s. 


V 


I 


WORKS 


SAMUEL  DEXTER  BRADFORD,  LL.  D, 


*    *    *    "  What  is  writ,  is  writ,- 
Would  it  were  worthier." 

CMlde  Harold's  Pilgrimage. 


BOSTON: 
PHILLIPS,    SAMPSON    &    COMPANY, 

13    WINTEB    STREET. 

1858. 


Univ.  Library,  UC  Santa  Cruz  1994 


PRESS  OF 

Ss.  (Ettfsm.— tfranfclfn  -prfntfng 

Corner  of  Franklin  and  Hawley  Streets, 

BOSTON. 


DEDICATION. 


To   SAMUEL   DEXTER   BRADFORD,  Junior,  and  JOHN  HENRY  BRADFORD: 

MY  DEAR  SONS  : 

HAVING  made  a  collection  of  some  of  my  miscellaneous  writings, 
I  have  concluded  to  inscribe  them  to  you. 

It  was  once  the  custom,  on  occasions  of  this  kind,  to  make  a 
selection  of  some  distinguished  name,  to  whom  the  author  dedicated 
his  work,  and  whose  favor  and  protection  he  invoked  in  its  behalf. 
When  that  distinguished  philosopher,  John  Locke,  Gent.,  had 
finished  his  great  Essay  concerning  the  Human  Understanding,  he 
dedicated  it  to  the  Right  Honorable  Thomas,  Earl  of  Pembroke 
and  Montgomery,  with  a  list  of  other  titles  too  long  to  enumerate, 
and  he  said,  that,  "  as  it  had  grown  up  under  his  Lordship's  eye, 
he  had  a  natural  right  to  come  to  his  Lordship  for  protection." 

In  the  present  case,  I  have  no  occasion  to  prefer  a  request  of 
that  nature  to  any  one,  as  this  collection  has  been  made  for  circula- 
tion only  amongst  a  few  particular  friends,  so  that  it  is  not  deemed 
necessary,  (as  i&  so  often  done,)  to  invoke  even  the  tender  mercies 
of  critics  or  reviewers,  should  this  work  be  ever  so  unfortunate,  as 
to  pass  into  their  hands,  and  be  considered  worthy  of  their  perusal. 

The  mode  I  have  adopted  of  collecting  my  writings,  and  having 
them  bound  together  in  one  volume,  cannot  fail  to  call  your  atten- 
tion to  them,  and,  if  they  do  not  interest  you  now,  whilst  you  are 


iv  DEDICATION. 

so  young,  I  cannot  doubt  they  will  do  so  presently,  when  you  will 
naturally  desire  to  know  what  your  father's  opinions  were  upon 
the  various  subjects  discussed. 

You  will  perceive  the  collection  dates  from  the  19th  October, 
1813,  more  than  forty-four  years  ago,  at  which  time,  you  must 
remember,  how  inferior  were  the  means  of  obtaining  a  good  educa- 
tion, compared  with  those  in  use  at  present.  Teachers,  books, 
schools,  colleges,  were  few  and  imperfect.  I  was  almost  twelve 
years  old  before  I  entered  a  school,  or  commenced  the  study  of 
grammar.  The  appearance  of  things,  around  the  mansion  of  my 
kind  and  most  excellent  father,  in  Roxbury,  was  very  different 
then  from  that  presented  now.  The  house  was  almost  surrounded 
by  woods.  Very  little  of  the  land  was  cleared  or  cultivated. 
E-abbits  and  wild  squirrels  were  very  abundant,  not  to  mention 
other  animals  of  a  less  pleasing  description,  which  made  sad  havoc 
in  the  poultry  yard.  The  woods  were  filled  with  wild  pigeons, 
partridges,  woodcocks,  and  quails,  holding  out  such  inducements  for 
boys  addicted  to  hunting,  (as  all  such  sports  were  then  called,)  as 
cannot  be  readily  conceived  of  at  the  present  time,  when  the  forests 
are  gone,  the  ground  shot  over  by  so  many  people,  and  almost 
without  game  of  any  kind.  Like  other  boys  of  my  age,  I  passed 
most  of  my  time  in  the  woods,  with  my  dog  and  my  gun.  The 
beautiful  white  rabbits,  which  abounded  in  those  days,  had  greater 
attractions  for  me  than  books  of  any  kind. 

On  the  seventh  of  September,  1807,  I  was  persuaded,  by  the 
kindest  and  most  affectionate  of  mothers,  to  enter  the  family  of  the 
Bev.  Joshua  Bates,  of  Dedham,  who  prepared  me  for  college, 
and  I  was  admitted  a  member  of  the  Freshman  Class  at  Cambridge, 
on  the  first  of  September,  1810,  and  graduated  nearly  three 
months  before  I  was  nineteen  years  of  age.  I  mention  this  to 
account,  in  part,  for  the  imperfection  of  my  college  exercises,  a 
few  of  which  are  contained  in  this  volume. 


DEDICATION.  V 

Of  the  kindness  and  attention  I  received  from  my  preceptor,  Dr. 
Bates,  afterwards  President  of  Middleborough  College,  I  cannot 
speak  in  terms  of  too  exalted  praise.  He  was  a  scholar,  and — 
what  is  more  important — a  wise  and  good  man.  He  graduated  at 
Cambridge  in  1800,  having  obtained  the  first  honor  in  a  class, 
which  contained  Joseph  Stevens  Buckminster  and  Chief  Justice 
Shaw  amongst  the  graduates  of  that  year. 

I  studied  very  hard  at  Cambridge ;  observed  all  the  college  rules 
and  regulations ;  was  never  fined  during  the  four  years  I  remained 
there  ;  was  always  commended  by  my  teachers,  and  rewarded  upon 
every  suitable  occasion.  There  were  many  in  my  class  who  were 
devoted  to  their  studies  \  and  some  who  have  greatly  distinguished 
themselves  since.  One  of  the  number,  William  H.  Prescott,  the  his- 
torian, has  nearly  as  many  titles  to  his  name  in  the  college  cata- 
logue as  a  Spanish  grandee ;  and  I  will  add  that  nearly  every  one, 
who  has  sustained  a  high  reputation  since,  was  a  good  scholar  at 
Cambridge,  thus  confirming  the  observations  of  the  great  Lord 
Chancellor  Eldon,  who,  as  late  as  1836,  wrote  the  following  most 
excellent  advice  to  a  grandson  about  to  be  entered  at  Oxford : 

"  It  will  depend  much  upon  yourself  what  degree  of  benefit  you  may  reap  there. 
Of  the  young,  it  has  been  said, '  Gaudent,  equis,  canibusque,  et  aprici  gramine 
campi,'  or  something  to  that  effect.  Of  extravagant  gratification  of  that  passion  in 
young  men,  I  well  remember  the  pains  which  were  taken  in  Oxford  to  restrain  it. 
What  are  precisely  the  rules  of  the  university,  in  this  respect,  now,  I  cannot  say ; 
but  so  much  I  can  say,  that,  after  long  and  great  experience,  I  never  knew  a  young 
man  who  had  indulged  too  much  in  those  amusements  at  Oxford,  to  the  neglect  of 
very  diligent,  if  not  severe  duty,  who  ever  afterwards  in  life  graced  his  friends* 
family  or  country,  as  I  hope  and  pray  you  may  hereafter  grace  them  ;  and  I  never 
knew  one  who  signally  devoted  his  time  at  Oxford  to  study,  who  did  not,  in  after 
life,  become  a  blessing  and  ornament  to  his  family  and  country. 

"  Be  very  select  in  the  company  you  keep  at  Oxford,  and  never  forget,  what  so 
many  forget,  that  the  university  is  not  a  place  for  amusement,  but  of  constant 
study,  to  be  interrupted  only  by  necessary  attention  to  health." 


vi  DEDICATION. 

These  are  the  words  of  Lord  Eldon,  but  they  are  as  wise  as 
those  of  Solomon,  and  ought  to  be  placarded  in  letters  of  gold  upon 
tablets  of  silver  within  the  walls  of  every  college  in  the  country. 
Let  them  sink  deep  into  your  hearts,  and  be  impressed  upon  your 
memory,  and  time  will  prove  how  true  and  wise  they  are. 

When  I  graduated,  in  August,  1814,  the  country  was  engaged 
in  a  disastrous  war  with  Great  Britain.  Commerce  was  paralyzed. 
Our  ships  were  perishing  with  the  dry-rot  at  our  wharves,  or  upon 
our  rivers,  where  they  had  been  towed  to  save  them  from  seizure 
by  the  enemy.  Our  merchants  were  in  despair. 

Having  a  salutary  dread  of  idleness,  although  inclined  to  become 
a  merchant,  I  immediately  entered  the  office  of  my  uncle,  the  late 
Judge  Ward  of  Boston,  and  commenced  the  study  of  the  law, 
which,  however,  I  abandoned  at  once,  on  the  news  of  peace,  in 
February,  1815,  when  I  entered  the  counting-room  of  an  import- 
ing house  in  Broad  Street ;  was  soon  after  admitted  a  partner  ;  and 
embarked  for  England  to  conduct  the  business  of  the  house  there. 
I  have  visited  that  country  many  times  since,  and  have  resided 
there  altogether  about  seventeen  years,  having  been  engaged  in  a 
large  and  laborious  business,  which  occupied  all  my  time  and 
thoughts,  left  me  no  leisure  to  review  the  books  I  had  studied  at 
Cambridge,  and  often  deprived  me  of  the  time  required  for 
recreation  and  health. 

Knowing  how  busy  I  was  for  so  many  years,  taking  care  of  the 
ajOfairs  not  only  of  my  own  house,  but  of  another  very  exten- 
sive one,  located  in  New  York,  Messrs.  Peter  Remsen  &  Co., 
you  will  not  be  surprised  at  any  errors  you  may  find  in  the  vol- 
ume inscribed  to  you ;  nor  can  you  expect  those  graces  of  style  and 
composition,  which  are  found  in  the  works  of  professed  scholars, 
but  are  not  expected  in  those  of  the  active  and  busy  merchant. 
I  have  endeavored,  however,  always  to  express  myself  with 


DEDICATION.  vii 

perspicuity,  which  always  pleases  the  reader,  as  he  is  ahle  so  easily 
and  readily  to  comprehend  the  author  he  is  perusing. 

You  may  not  have  decided  yet  to  what  you  will  turn  your 
attention,  after  you  have  obtained  your  education ;  but  I  trust  that 
a  perusal  of  the  lives  of  great  and  good  men,  will  stimulate  in 
you  a  desire  to  excel ;  that  you  will  take  a  lofty  model  for  your 
guide,  and  that  you  may  fully  appreciate  the  value  and  indispen- 
sable necessity  of  religion,  industry,  perseverance,  and  self-denial. 
Remember  that,  with  these  qualities,  there  is  scarcely  any  eminence 
which  may  not  be  obtained ;  and  that  without  these  no  satisfactory 
progress  can  be  made. 

Remember  the  proverbs  of  Solomon :  "  My  son,  forget  not  my 
law,  but  let  thy  heart  keep  my  commandments.  For  length  of 
days,  long  life  and  peace  shall  they  add  to  thee.  Keep  thy  heart 
with  all  diligence,  for  out  of  it  are  the  issues  of  life." 

I  will  conclude  with  an  Eastern  apothegm,  which  I  have  always 
admired,  not  only  for  the  beauty  of  the  language,  but  also  for  the 
excellent  moral  it  contains. 

On  parents'  knees  a  naked,  new-born  child, 
Weeping  thou  sat'st,  whilst  all  around  thee  smiled ; 
So  live,  that,  sinking  in  thy  last,  long  sleep, 
Calm,  thou  may'st  smile,  whilst  all  around  thee  weep. 

I  remain  your  ever  affectionate  Father, 

SAMUEL  DEXTER  BRADFORD. 
WEST  ROXBURY,  January  1st,  1858. 


CONTENTS. 


0  •  Page 

I.  A  LATIN  ORATION,  delivered  at  the  Exhibition  at  Cambridge, 

on  the  19th  of  October,  1813 1 

II.  AN  ADDRESS  delivered  the  14th  of  May,  18  14,  before  the  Relig- 
ious Club,  at  Cambridge,  in  the  presence  of  President  Kirk- 
land,  Professors  Hedge,  and  Farrar ;  Andrews  Norton,  and 
several  graduates  of  the  Divinity  School  at  Cambridge.  5 

III.  A  DISSERTATION  delivered  at  Cambridge,  on  the  28th  of  July, 

1814,  in  the  presence  of  the  Faculty  and  Students;  to 
which  had  been  previously  assigned,  by  the  Government  of 
the  College,  the  second  Bowdoin  Prize  Medal  of  thirty  dol- 
lars, to  be  contended  for  by  the  members  of  the  Junior 
Class :"  '.  •  ;£  '/— i  -'•' -V'-'v^  24 

IV.  A  DELIBERATIVE  DISCUSSION,  delivered  at  Cambridge,  on  Com- 

mencement Day,  the  31st  of  August,  1814.        .        ,        .     .      44 

V.  A  THESIS  for  Commencement  Day,  31st  of  August,  1814.          .          50 

VI.  AN  OBITUARY  NOTICE  of  BENJAMIN  BILLINGS.        .        .         .  52 

VII.  AN  OBITUARY  NOTICE  of  PETER  REMSEN.        .        .        .        «/         55 

VIII.  A  LETTER  from  Carlsbad,  in  Austrian  Bohemia ;  first  published 

in  the  Boston  Morning  Post,  of  the  21st  of  December,  1835.         58 

IX.    A  LETTER  from  Manchester,  England ;  first  published  in  the 

Boston  Morning  Post,  of  the  28th  of  January,  1837.  .  67 

X.  AN    ARTICLE  ON  THE  BOSTON  BANKS  ;    first   published  in  the 

Boston  Morning  Post,  of  the  22d  of  March,  1838.       ..      . ,,.,      73 

XI.  A  LETTER  from  Manchester,  England ;   first  published  in  the 

Boston  Morning  Post,  of  the  llth  of  January,  1840.  .         .  77 

XII.  EDITORIAL  ARTICLE  from  the  Manchester  Guardian,  of  the  15th 
of  January,  1842,  on  the  capture  and  detention  of  American 
vessels  in  the  African  seas,  by  the  cruisers  of  Great  Britain.       81 
B 


CONTENTS. 

Page. 

REVIEW  of  the  above-named  article,  with  the  prefatory  remarks 
of  the  editors ;  first  published  in  the  Manchester  Guardian, 
of  the  22d  of  January,  1842 83 

REJOINDER  to  the  Remarks  of  the  Editors  of  the  Guardian  ;  first 

published  in  the  Guardian,  of  the  29th  of  January,  1842.  99 

XIII.  A  LETTER  from  London  ;    first  published  in  the  Boston  Morning 

Post,  of  the  10th  of  July,  1843 116 

XIV.  THREE  LETTERS  to  the  Hon.   ABBOTT  LAWRENCE,  in  reply  to 

those  addressed  by  him  to  the  Hon.  WILLIAM  C.  RIVES,  of 
Virginia,  (hereunto  prefixed  ;)  first  published  in  the  Boston 
Morning  Post,  of  the  17th,  18th  and  19th  of  February, 
1846.  Also,  the  Faneuil  Hall  Proceedings  in  favor  of  Free 
Trade,  in  the  year  1820.  i  .  .'  i  ;.  .  .  128 

XV.  A  CRITICISM  upon  "  Naomi,  or  Boston  Two  Hundred  Years 
Ago  ;  "  first  published  in  the  Boston  Morning  Post,  of  Janu- 
ary 27th,  1848.  184 

XVI.  A  REPORT  from  memory,  of  a  Lecture  delivered  at  Boston,  on 
the  2d  February,  1848,  before  the  Mercantile  Library  Asso- 
ciation, by  Hon.  B.  F.  BUTLER,  of  New  York.  .  .  194 

XVII.  A  LETTER  to  THEODORE  PARKER  ;  first  published  in  the  Bos- 
ton Morning  Post,  14th  of  June,  1848 201 

XVIII.  LETTER  addressed  to  the  Hon.  HARRISON  GRAY  OTIS,  but  never 
published  ;  Mr.  Otis  having  died  the  day  before  its  intended 
insertion  in  the  Boston  Post />  ,VJ  210 

XIX.  FIVE  LETTERS  addressed  to  the  Hon.  WILLIAM  M.  MEREDITH, 
Secretary  of  the  Treasury ;  first  published  in  the  Boston 
Morning  Post,  of  the  1st,  2d,  4th,  5th  and  6th  February,  1850.  22 1 

XX.  OBITUARY  NOTICE  of  Captain  BURSLEY  ;  first  published  in  the 

Boston  Morning  Post,  of  the  15th  of  February,  1850.         .         263 

XXI.  A  SPEECH  delivered  before  the  Norfolk  Agricultural  Society, 
at  Dedham,  the  25th  of  September,  1850  ;  first  published 
in  the  Boston  Morning  Post,  of  the  9th  of  October,  1850.  270 

XXII.  A  LETTER  to  the  Electors  of  the  County  of  Norfolk  ;  first  pub- 
lished in  the  Boston  Morning  Post,  of  the  4th  of  November, 
1850.  ?..' -«.?,  <*/  .  282 

XXIII.  A  SPEECH  delivered  at  the  Grand  Union  Meeting,  in  Faneuil 

Hall,  on  the  26th  of  November,  1850  ;  first  published  in  the 
Press  and  Post,  of  the  28th  of  November,  1850,  .  .  287 

XXIV.  A  LETTER  addressed  to  the  Legislature  of  Massachusetts ;  first 

published  in  the  Boston  Morning  Post,  of  the  8th  of  Janu- 
ary, 1851,  upon  the  election  of  CHARLES  SUMNER  to  the 
Senate  of  the  United  States.  .  .  .  .  293 


CONTENTS.  xi 

Page. 

XXV.  AN  ADDRESS  to  the  Democrats  of  Norfolk  County ;  read  and 
approved  in  the  Convention  assembled  at  Dedham,  14th  of 
September,  1851 299 

XXVI.  A  SPEECH  delivered  at  Dedham,  on  the  20th  of  July,  1852,  at 

the  Democratic  Ratification  Meeting,         .         .        .         .         314 

XXVII.  AN  OBITUARY  NOTICE  of  the  Hon.  DAVID  HENSHAW  ;  first  pub- 
lished in  the  Boston  Morning  Post,  of  the  20th  of  November, 
1852.  .         ,         .....         .         .        .         329 

Also,   AN  ACCOUNT  of  his  funeral.  .        , ' '      .        .        •        .        334 

XXVIII.  AN  OBITUARY  NOTICE  of  Mrs.  SUSANNAH  BILLINGS  ;   first  pub- 
lished in  the  Christian  Register,  of  the  16th  April,  1853.  340 

XXIX.  A  LETTER  containing  an  Account  of  the  Obsequies  of  the 
Rev.  JOSHUA  BATES,  at  Dudley,  Massachusetts ;  first  pub- 
lished in  the  New  York  Journal  of  Commerce,  the  21st 
of  January,  1854.  .  .  .  .  .  .  •  .  346 

XXX.  A  SPEECH  delivered  at  the  Apollo  Rooms,  in  New  York,  at  a 
meeting  of  the  Stockholders  of  the  New  York  and  New 
Haven  Railroad ;  first  published  in  the  New  York  Herald, 
of  the  4th  of  October,  1854.  .  *  ,-*  .  .  ?  .>  14  350 

XXXI.  A  SPEECH  delivered  at  New  Haven,  Connecticut,  at  a  meeting 
of  the  Stockholders  of  the  New  York  and  New  Haven  Rail- 
road, on  the  8th  of  November,  1854  ;  first  published  in  the 
New  York  Journal  of  Commerce,  of  the  llth  of  November, 
1854 356 

XXXII.  REMARKS  made  before  the  Board  of  Overseers  of  Harvard 
College,  on  the  12th  of  April,  1855,  on  the  question  of 
confirming  the  appointment  of  Rev.  F.  D.  Huntington,  as 
Plummer  Professor ;  first  published  in  the  Boston  Daily 
Advertiser,  of  the  14th  of  April,  1855 367 

XXXIII.  SPEECH  delivered  at  New  Haven,  Connecticut,  on  the  10th  of 

May,  1855,  at  the  Annual  Meeting  of  the  New  York  and 
New  Haven  Railroad  Company  ;  first  published  in  the  New 
York  Journal  of  Commerce,  on  the  12th  of  May,  1855.  376 

XXXIV.  AN  OBITUARY  NOTICE  of  Mrs.  Mary  Langdon  Greenwood  ;  first 

published  in  the  Boston  Daily  Advertiser,  of  the  12th  of 
June,  1855 385* 

XXXV.  REMARKS  made  before  the  Board  of  Overseers  of  Harvard  Col- 
lege, on  the  14th  of  February,  1856,  on  the  rejection  of 
Edward  G.  Loring,  Esq.,  as  Law  Lecturer  at  Cambridge,  on 
the  15th  of  February,  1855  ;  first  published  in  the  Boston 
Daily  Atlas,  of  the  16th  February,  1856.  .  .  .  389 


xii  CONTENTS. 

Page 

XXXVI.  COBRESPONDENCE  with  President  Jackson 398 

XXXVII.  DECISION  of  the  Court  of  Appeals  of  the  State  of  New  York,  in 
the  case  of  the  President,  Directors,  and  Company,  of  the 
Mechanics  Bank,  of  the  city  of  New  York,  against  the  New 
York  and  New  Haven  Railway  Company,  and  confirmatory 
of  the  opinion  expressed  in  the  speeches  of  S.  D.  Bradford, 
delivered  on  the  4th  of  October,  the  8th  of  November,  1854, 
and  on  the  10th  of  May,  1855 401 


WORKS 


OF 


SAMUEL  DEXTER  BRADFORD,  LL.  D. 


A  LATIN  ORATION. 


NATIONIBUS  GLORIAM  LITTER*:  AFFERUNT. 

INTEK  causas  multas,  quae  aliis  temporibus  addiderunt 
dignitatem  honoremque  nationibus,  doctrina  et  eruditio 
conspicuum  illustremque  locum  tenent. 

Etsi  Mars  imperatorum  votis  respondeat,  tamen  est 
Minerva  sola,  "  quae  dictis  moerentia  pectora  mulcet,  animi 
motus  sedat,  et  homines  esse  sapientes  docet." 

"  Qui  bene  placarit  Palladi,  doctus  erit." 

Ille,  qui  hostes  externos  vicerit,  urbes,  quas  subegit,  e 
manibus  suis  eripi  baud  raro  videt,  et  suas  possessionesferro 
invadi  ab  hostibus,  quos  ante  contemserit ;  sed  vetustas, 
quaa  omnia  alia  consumit,  artium  scientiaeque  monumenta 
non  delere  potest,  sed  laude  postera  crescunt.  Imperium 
Romanum  jam  pridem  non  levi  ruina  disjectum,  at  Virgi- 
lius,  Horatius,  Livius,  Tacitusque  omnis  aevi  oblectamenta- 
admiratioque  manent,  et  manebunt.  Doctrinam  et  eru, 
ditionem  animos  mollire,  irasque  temperare,  barbararum 


2  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

et  rudium  gentium  conditio  maxime  probat.  "  Pleni  om- 
nes  sunt  libri,  plenae  sapientium  voces,  plena  exemplorum 
vetustas,  quae  jacerent  in  tenebris  omnia,  nisi  lumen 
literarum  accederet."  "  Antequam  lux  scientiae  in  animos 
indoctorum  et  rudium  hominum  penetret,  tempus  per 
otium  transigunt,  nudi  atque  intecti,  sicuti  peregrinantes 
vivunt."  Cum  vero  doctrinae  amore  semel  ardent,  for- 
tuna  simul  cum  moribus  iinmutatur.  "  Quae  homines 
arant,  navigant,  sedificant ;  virtuti  omnia  parent." 

Hactenus  nationum  rudium  conditionem  contemplavi- 
mus,  antequam  artes  utiles  colentur ;  sed  cum  scientiae 
fundamentum  posuerint,  aedificium  artes  ingenuae  elegant- 
esque  cito  extruunt. 

"  Didicisse  fideliter  artes,  emollit  mores,  nee  sinit  esse  feros." 

Cato  ille  censor  fertur  invidiam  subiisse,  quod  artium 
Graecarum  admissionem  in  Italiam  impedire  obniteretur. 
Tamen  constat,  eum  a  sententia  sua  non  solum  discessisse? 
sed  senem  Graecas  literas  didicisse.  Etsi  concedatur, 
rerum  abundantiam  opesque.  cupiditates  inanes  nonnun- 
quam  gignere,  et  luxuriam  doctrinae  et  eruditionis  comitem, 
tamen  servitutem,  paupertatem,  miseriamque  ignorantiae 
comites,  nemo  negare  potest. 

Quod  malum  gravius  hominis  animum  invadere  possit, 
quam  superstitio,  quae  ex  ignorantia  procreatur,  et  timore 
alitur?  Cum  ilia  oculis  nubem  objicit,  quid  caliginem 
dispellere  potest,  nisi  philosophia  atque  eruditio  ?  Ut  oriens 
sol  rorem  matutinum  dispergit,  sic  lux  scientiae,  cum  ani- 
mum ignorantia  ac  superstitione  oppressum  intraverit, 
tenebras  mentis  discutit,  liberatque  omni  inani  timore. 

Alexander  magnus,  (ut  Cicero  ait)  multos  scriptores 
secum  habuisse  dicitur ;  atque  is,  cum  in  Sigeo  ad  Achillis 
tumulum  adstitisset,  "0  fortunate,"  inquit,  "adolescens, 
qui  tuae  virtutis  Homerum  praeconem  inveneris."  "Et 
jure  optimo  ;  nam  nisi  Ilias  ilia  exstitisset,  idem  tumulus, 


A    LATIN    ORATION.  3 

qui  ejus  corpus  contexerat,  nomen  etiam  obruisset."  li, 
qui  in  omni  aevo  damno  aut  poena  doctos  afficere  aggressi, 
aut  tyranni,  aut  homines  indocti  rudesque  fuerunt.  Etsi 
tamen  Caligula  crudelis  Virgilii  Homerique  libros  perdere 
conatus  est,  tamen,  cum  ingenii  egregia  facinora,  sicuti 
anima  ipsa,  immortalia  sint,  manent,  manebunt  in  animis 
hominum  in  saecula  saeculorum. 

"  Trahimur  omnes  laudis  studio,  et  optimus  quisque  maxime  gloria  ducitur." 

Is  itaque,  qui  viros  laudem  mereri  spe  famae  glori- 
asque  incitet,  magna  aestimatione  semper  habendus  est. 
Talis  poeta  et  historiae  scriptor  est,  ad  quos  pertinet, 
rnagnorum,  illustrium,  et  sapientium  virorum  res  gestas 
posteris  tradere.  Hoc  modo,  nomen  civis  illustris,  ac 
insignis  imperatoris,  non  cum  corpore  peribit,  sed  postera 
laude  crescet.  Nisi  Tyrtaeus  cecinisset,  Lacedaemonii  non 
vicissent.  Igitur  cum  imperator  prudentia  atque  virtute 
patriae  hostes  fuderit,  et  sapiens  civis  improborum  homi- 
num clandestina  consilia  invenerit,  poetse  et  historiaa 
scriptori  laudis  aliquam  partem  tribuamus. 

Sed  ut  haec  non  falsa  videantur,  ad  Graeciam  Romamque 
spectemus.  In  Graacia,  tam  inclyta  non  solum  propter 
eruditionem  artesque,  sed  etiam  res  prosperas  in  bello, 
militum  duces  oratores  fuerunt,  omnesque  regebat  elo- 
quentia.  Tanta  Grsecorum  doctrina,  et  scientia,  ut  Grsecia 
non  terrae  nomen,  sed  eruditionis  et  eloquentiae  habebatur. 

Imperatores  Graeci,  cum  hostes  externos  vicerint,  laurea 
atque  omnium  laude  donati  in  urbem  rediere.  Post  non 
multos  dies,  libris  poetae  in  coelum  tolluntur.  Hac  spe 
elati,  Themistocles,  Alcibiades,  Pericles,  atque  Miltiades, 
ense  in  bello,  consiliis  sub  placida  pace,  patriam  defend- 
erunt.  Si  ad  Romam  contra  spectemus,  omnem  illustrem 
civem  literis  initiatum  invenimus,  et  oratorem  "  qui  (ut  ait 
Pindarus)  non  pluvias  aquas  colligit,  sed  vivo  gurgite 
exundat,"  quique  dictis  Romanorum  animos  tam  diu 


4  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

regebat,  doctrina  atque  optimarum  artium  studiis  erudi- 
tissimum.  Nam  etsi  Cicero  se  populi  Roman!  saluti 
devovit,  tamen  libri,  quos,  posteritatem  ut  delectarent  reli- 
quit,  ad  ejus  laudem  plus  contulerunt,  quam  labores,  quos 
consul  aut  senator  sustinuit.  Historian!  Romanam  legen- 
tes,  ducem  illustrem  magnanimumque  admiratione,  sed 
Ciceronem  quadam  pietate  contemplamur. 

Si  dubitetur  nam  spes  laudis  famaeque  saepe  homines 
alliciat  de  patria  sua  bene  mereri,  respondeo,  omnium  illus- 
trium  et  insignium  virorum  vitas  hanc  sententiam  confir- 
mare.  "  Dum  gloria  est  consentiens  laus  bonorum,  et 
incorrupta  vox  bene  judicantium  de  excellente  virtute, 
hanc  laudem  mereri  omnes  decet."  "  Nullam  enim  virtus 
aliam  mercedem  laborum  periculorumque  desiderat,prseter 
laudem  ac  gloriam." 

Sed  quid  enumerem  artium  multitudinem,  sine  quibus 
vita  omnino  nulla  esse  possit  ?  "  Quis  enim  aegris  subve- 
niret,  quae  esset  oblectatio  valentium,  qui  victus^  aut 
cultus,  nisi  tarn  multse  nobis  artes  ministrarent,  quibus 
rebus  exculta  hominum  vita  tantum  distat  a  victu  et 
cultu  bestiarum  ?  "  Sed  ut  verbo  uno  dicam,  quo  plures 
sapientes  viros  ulla  terra  contineat,  hoc  felicior  ac  doctior 
erit.  Talis  gentis  gloria,  ut  sol  nulla  nube  obscuratus, 
summo  splendore  enitescit :  atque  cum  in  tali  terra  literse 
auctoritate  publica  sustentantur,  duplici  laude  florent. 

Quamquam  in  nostra  patria  nunc  rauco  strepunt  cornua 
cantu,  atque  pax,  felicitas,  honorque  ab  oculis  eripiuntur, 
tamen  diu  expectatum  diem  venturum  speramus,  quando 
docti  eruditique  ab  omnibus  in  maxima  asstimatione 
habeantur,  quando  America  in  artibus  et  onini  virtute 
Europam  aemuletur ;  et  omnes,  qui  in  Senatus  consiliis 
versantur,  ut  Hamilton,  omni  virtute  praaditi ;  et  impe- 
ratores  nostri,  ut  Washington,  omni  laude  digni  sint; 
Washington,  quern  omnes  boni  venerantur,  amantque, 

"  Nil  oriturum  alias,  nil  ortum  tale  fatentes." 


A    DISSERTATION 


ON  THE  RIGHT  AND  DUTY  OF  FREE  INQUIRY  IN  MATTERS  OF  RELIGION. 


Isx  OP  CORINTHIANS,  x.  15.— "I  speak  as  to  wise  men,  judge  ye  what  I  say." 

IT  has  ever  been  the  lot  of  some  opinions,  as  of  some 
men,  to  have  their  claims  acknowledged,  because  no  one 
has  had  the  confidence  to  dispute  them,  and  to  escape 
the  censure  of  the  public,  because  they  were  supported 
by  rank  and  elevated  station,  or  because  they  favored  the 
indulgence  of  some  favorite  inclination.  Perhaps,  how- 
ever, none  has  had  more  advocates,  or  been  maintained 
with  greater  zeal,  than  the  unreasonable  maxim,  that,  as 
religion  is  a  system,  which  we  can  but  imperfectly  com- 
prehend, it  should  never  be  examined ;  that  the  Bible  is 
a  book,  which  demands  implicit  obedience  and  belief, 
though  infinitely  above  our  comprehension ;  and  that, 
since  it  contains  a  variety  of  sacred  doctrines,  which  it 
surpasses  the  strength  of  the  human  understanding  to 
comprehend,  we  should  resolve  to  live  in  ignorance  of  the 
reasons  of  its  commands,  and,  at  the  same  time,  yield  an 
unlimited  obedience  to  its  dictates.  By  some,  the  world 
is  represented  as  lost  in  tenfold  ignorance  and  error ;  the 
understanding  as  obscured  by  the  degeneracy  of  our  first 
parents ;  and  the  whole  human  race  as  incapable  of  every 
meritorious  and  virtuous  action. 

It  has  always  been  the  practice  of  the  artful  and  design- 
ing, when  the  absurdity  of  their  opinions  was  about  to  be 


6  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

exposed  by  the  light  of  reason,  to  declaim  upon  the  falli- 
bility of  man,  and  the  imperfections  of  the  human  mind. 
By  these  means,  the  grossest  absurdities  have  been  often 
imposed  upon  the  credulity  of  the  inexperienced  and 
unlearned,  by  assuring  them  that  the  opinions  they  were 
solicited  to  embrace  were  mysteries  and  truths  too  ab- 
struse for  a  vulgar  understanding,  but  which,  at  the  same 
time,  demanded  their  confidence  and  belief.  Doctrines, 
wholly  contradictory  to  common  sense,  have  been  palmed 
upon  mankind,  under  the  veil  of  mystery,  or  the  ignorant 
have  confided  in  them,  because  an  apparent  sanctity  had 
been  thrown  over  them  by  time,  or  they  have  gained 
admittance  by  receiving  the  support  of  the  great  and 
powerful.  Would  to  Heaven  I  could  add  that  this  mis- 
taken zeal,  that  this  artful  policy,  which  has  served  so 
long  to  support  the  tottering  throne  of  popery,  had  been 
confined  to  the  church  of  Rome ;  that  it  had  prevailed 
in  those  countries  alone,  where  the  clergy  were  too  profli- 
gate, and  the  impositions  of  hierarchy  too  daring  and 
oppressive,  to  endure  the  clear  and  convincing  light  of 
reason,  and  impartial  examination.  But  a  portion  of  the 
same  spirit  has  descended  to  later  times,  and  prevailed  in 
countries  where  the  Bible  is  not  taken  from  the  possession 
of  the  people  by  the  daring  and  unhallowed  hand  of 
public  authority;  where  the  clergy  are  highly  distin- 
guished for  the  purity  of  their  lives,  and  the  simplicity 
of  their  manners,  no  less  than  for  eminent  learning  and 
zeal  in  their  profession  ;  and  where  civil  government  im- 
poses no  restraints  upon  the  consciences  of  its  subjects, 
but  grants  them  religious  liberty  in  its  fullest  extent. 

Since,  however,  there  is  no  unjust  or  impolitic  measure, 
which  has  not  some  advocates,  who  pretend  to  assign  the 
reasons  of  their  support ;  and  since  it  is  a  question  of  no 
small  importance,  whether  the  Christian  should  not  be  per- 
mitted and  exhorted  to  exercise  all  his  reasoning  powers 


FREE  INQUIRY  AS  RESPECTS  RELIGION.  7 

upon  the  subjects  of  religion ;  I  propose,  in  the  following 
observations,  to  consider  the  right  and  duty  of  private 
judgment,  and  free  inquiry  in  the  concerns  of  religion, 
and  some  of  the  objections,  which  have  been  made  to  the 
use  of  reason,  in  examining  the  truths  of  Christianity.  I 
shall  commence  my  observations  with  acknowledging  it  as 
an  indisputable  principle,  that  the  understanding  is  natu- 
rally right,  and  capable  of  distinguishing  truth  from  error, 
and  right  from  wrong ;  Because,  to  deny  this  maxim  is  to 
subvert  the  whole  structure  of  society. 

Like  an  ancient  philosopher,  we  shall  prove  the  fallacy 
of  our  reasoning,  by  saying  that  everything  is  doubtful, 
and,  at  the  same  time,  making  pretensions  to  the  discovery, 
that  it  is  certain,  that  everything  is  uncertain. 

The  right  of  examining  the  truths  of  religion  is  one  of 
the  most  important  and  valuable  we  possess,  and,  as  it  con- 
stitutes one  of  those  inalienable  privileges,  which  belong 
to  us  in  every  situation  in  life,  so  it  should  never  be  resigned, 
while  we  make  any  pretensions  to  the  name  of  reasona- 
ble beings,  or  to  the  inestimable  right  of  religious  liberty. 

There  are  many  other  privileges,  which  are  possessed 
in  a  state  of  nature,  which  require  that  a  portion  of  them 
should  be  surrendered  to  civil  authority  for  the  public 
good.  But,  with  respect  to  this,  the  case  is  far  otherwise, 
and  it  can  never  be  restrained  or  limited  by  civil  govern- 
ment, without  a  surrender  of  an  invaluable  privilege  and 
security.  As  the  right  of  self-preservation  can  never  be 
resigned,  without  exposing  our  temporal  interest  to  a  vari- 
ety of  dangers,  so  that  of  free  inquiry  into  the  concerns  of 
religion  can  never  be  renounced,  without  hazarding  our 
eternal  welfare,  and  subjecting  ourselves  to  be  deceived  by 
the  wildest  absurdities.  As  a  right  to  the  salubrious  air 
is  necessary  to  the  health  and  vigor  of  the  body,  so  this 
is  no  less  requisite  to  the  preservation  of  the  same  qual- 
ities in  the  human  mind.  The  ambitious  ruler  may  per- 


8  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

suade  a  deluded  people,  to  make  a  surrender  of  their  nat- 
ural liberty,  and  a  spiritual  despot  may  assume  the  privi- 
leges of  infallibility,  deceive  with  making  claims  to  divine 
authority,  or  terrify  by  the  thunders  of  the  church ;  but 
all  such  pretensions  are  vain,  and  the  arts  of  ambitious 
men,  by  which  they  hope  to  rise  to  eminence  on  the  ruins 
of  truth  and  reason,  and  should  therefore  be  rejected  with 
that  calm  but  firm  and  spirited  opposition,  which  they  so 
justly  deserve. 

Having  said  thus  much  upon  the  right  of  free  inquiry, 
I  proceed  to  inquire  what  is  implied  in  an  impartial  exam- 
ination of  religion.  When  a  number  of  persons  are 
selected  to  decide  upon  the  claims  of  two  contending 
parties,  it  is  always  considered  as  a  necessary  qualifica- 
tion, that  their  judgment  should  be  unbiased,  and  open  to 
conviction.  He  likewise,  who  examines  the  doctrines  of 
religion,  and  the  opinions  of  the  different  sects  into  which 
the  Christian  world  has  been  divided,  should  come  to  the 
inquiry  with  a  mind  free  from  prejudice,  and  ready  to  be 
convinced  by  sufficient  evidence.  He  who  desires  to 
know  the  whole  truth,  will  never  suffer  himself  to  be  influ- 
enced by  old  prejudices  and  prepossessions,  but  will 
endeavor  to  preserve  that  state  of  equilibrium,  which  is 
so  necessary  in  the  examination  of  religious  subjects.  The 
person  who  wishes  to  discover  the  truth  of  a  particular 
doctrine  which  suffers  the  indulgence  of  some  favorite  but 
criminal  pursuit,  will  hardly  listen  to  objections.  The 
syren  voice  of  pleasure  will  sound  too  sweetly  in  his  ears 
to  leave  room  for  the  harsh,  yet  certain  voice  of  reason. 
The  man  who  wishes  an  opinion  to  be  true  is  half  con- 
vinced of  its  truth  already,  will  turn  a  deaf  ear  to  all 
objections,  and  live  as  if  there  were  none.  But,  if  it 
requires  fairness  to  collect  the  evidence  of  different  relig- 
ious tenets,  it  is  likewise  necessary  that  no  less  time  than 
attention  should  be  employed  to  estimate  that  evidence, 


FREE  INQUIRY  AS  RESPECTS  RELIGION.  9 

and  to  give  to  each  portion  its  proper  degree  of  influence. 
Here  the  aid  of  reason,  and  the  rules  of  fair  criticism,  are 
most  required,  and  he  who  rejects  their  assistance,  because 
they  are  sometimes  perverted,  and  lead  to  dangerous  con- 
sequences, acts  a  part  no  less  absurd  than  he  who,  because 
his  eyesight  is  sometimes  injured  by  excess  of  light  or 
other  causes,  resolves  to  extinguish  his  eyes  at  once,  and 
grope  in  darkness.  Here  the  scholar  may  display  the 
depth  of  the  metaphysician,  the  acuteness  of  the  logician, 
and  the  candor  of  an  honest  man.  Without  these  precau- 
tions, error  will  assume  the  specious  garb  of  truth,  delu- 
sions resemble  the  sound  deductions  of  reason,  and  the 
dogmas  of  enthusiasm,  the  sacred  appearance  of  inspira- 
tion. In  the  last  place,  judging  with  impartiality  implies 
that,  in  assenting  to  a  proposition,  our  belief  be  propor- 
tionate to  its  evidence.  All  truths  are  not  equally  obvi- 
ous and  incontestable.  Many  lie  far  beyond  our  sight ; 
some  just  dawn  upon  the  view  ;  others  appear  in  a  clear 
and  convincing  light,  while  others  glare  upon  us  with  all 
the  force  of  demonstration.  Without  a  just  proportion  of 
our  assent,  we  shall  hardly  arrive  at  just  conclusions;  and 
if  the  intermediate  degrees  of  evidence  be  omitted,  the 
moralist,  like  the  mathematician,  who  has  lost  some  inter- 
mediate step  in  the  demonstration,  when  about  to  infer  the 
conclusion  from  the  premises,  will  soon  discover  that  the 
chain  is  imperfect,  and  that  a  new  link  must  be  supplied 
before  he  can  arrive  at  certainty  and  satisfaction  in  the 
process. 

The  duty  and  the  obligation  which  we  are  under  of 
examining  the  doctrines  and  commands  of  Scripture,, 
which  I  proposed  secondly  to  consider,  is  no  less  obvious 
than  the  right.  It  is  proved  by  the  danger  of  submitting 
to  the  decisions  of  men  fallible  in  their  judgment,  and 
often  prejudiced  in  their  determinations  ;  by  the  circum- 
stance of  our  being  endowed  with  reason ;  but,  above  all, 


10  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

by  the  example  and  command  of  our  blessed  Savior.  The 
motives  which  lead  to  erroneous  sentiments  in  religion 
are  extremely  numerous.  The  spirit  of  party,  the  love  of 
novelty,  and  an  evil  desire  of  reputation,  all  these  are  so 
many  allurements  which  serve  to  draw  mankind  from  the 
path  of  truth  and  reason. 

The  authority  of  men  is  one  of  the  most  fruitful  sources 
of  prejudice  and  error.  Religious  sentiments  are  some- 
times firmly  believed  because  they  were  professed  by  our 
parents,  instructors,  or  friends;  and  antiquity  seems  often 
to  cast  a  mist  over  the  minds  of  men,  which  it  seems 
impossible  to  dissipate.  To  place,  however,  implicit  confi- 
dence in  the  opinions  of  our  ancestors,  because  they  were 
peculiar  to  them,  and  not  because  they  are  founded  in 
truth,  is  to  assign  to  ourselves  but  an  inferior  rank  in  the 
creation,  to  deny  the  gradual  progress  of  the  understand- 
ing in  the  pursuit  of  truth,  and  to  suppose  our  ancestors 
the  standard  of  all  that  is  sublime  and  perfect  in  religion, 
or  elegant  and  learned  in  literature.  But  had  our  ances- 
tors no  imperfections  ?  Is  the  candle  of  the  Lord,  which 
has  so  long  enlightened  the  human  race,  almost  consumed, 
and  will  it  consequently  be  soon  extinguished  ?  Or  does 
it  rather  consist  of  more  durable  materials,  and  may  we 
not  expect  that  it  will  burn  forever  ? 

Indeed,  to  believe  all  that  our  predecessors  have  asserted, 
is  to  keep  the  mind  in  everlasting  infancy,  and  to  check 
every  noble  and  exalted  effort.  Had  such  been  the 
method  pursued  in  former  times,  what  would  the  world 
exhibit  but  a  scene  of  error  and  superstition  ?  In  vain 
should  we  look  for  the  sound  and  convincing  reasoning  of 
a  Socrates,  or  the  sublime  and  pathetic  sentiments  of  a 
Cicero. 

But  had  those  who  have  preceded  us,  no  heresies  in 
religion,  or  absurdities  in  philosophy?  The  answer  is 
obvious,  and  had  succeeding  generations  been  content 


FREE  INQUIRY  AS  RESPECTS  RELIGION.  H 

with  the  discoveries  and  principles  of  their  progenitors, 
the  vast  and  comprehensive  mind  of  Locke  would  have 
explored  the  regions  of  thought  in  vain,  and  the  maxims 
of  Aristotle  been  still  the  standard  of  perfection.  The 
investigations  of  this  wonderful  man  would  have  been 
considered  as  the  productions  of  a  lively  imagination, 
instead  of  the  sound  deductions  of  reason.  The  everlast- 
ing law  of  gravitation,  which  holds  the  pla-nets  in  their 
orbits,  and  subjects  them,  to  a  regular  revolution,  would 
have  still  existed,  but  the  concentric  spheres  of  the 
ancients  would  have  retained  the  confidence  and  belief  of 
men.  The  earth  would  have  continued  to  turn  upon  its 
axis,  but  it  would  still  have  been  heresy  to  maintain  and 
publish  an  opinion  so  contradictory  to  reason,  and  dan- 
gerous in  its  consequences.  The  opinions  of  our  parents, 
and  of  the  wise  and  virtuous,  should  be  always  treated  with 
becoming  deference,  and,  though  we  should  embrace  them, 
as  grounded  in  truth,  before  age  and  information  have 
qualified  us  for  an  impartial  examination,  still  there  is  a 
point  beyond  which  belief  is  idle  veneration,  and  submis- 
sion slavery.  Our  Maker  has  given  no  human  being  a 
sovereignty  over  the  faith  of  others,  and  he  who  assumes 
it  usurps  the  empire  of  reason. 

But,  admitting  that  we  ought  to  be  determined  in  the 
articles  of  our  faith  by  the  authority  of  men,  instead  of 
drinking  the  draughts  of  knowledge  and  divine  instruc- 
tion from  the  pure  and  unruffled  fountain  of  heavenly 
wisdom  ;  to  what  sect  or  denomination  of  Christians  shall 
we  apply  for  information  ?  There  have  been  nearly  as 
many  sects  as  disputed  opinions  in  the  world,  and  there 
are  but  few  truths  which  have  not  been  questioned  by 
different  men.  Thus,  on  whatever  side  we  view  the  prac- 
tice of  adopting  the  opinions  of  others  without  examina- 
tion, the  experiment  seems  big  with  danger. 

Our  obligation  to  embrace  no    doctrines  which  have 


1£  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

been  professed  by  others  without  sufficient  evidence,  is,  in 
the  next  place,  apparent  from  our  being  endowed  with 
reason.  No  anatomist,  when  dissecting  the  human  body, 
and  explaining  the  several  offices  which  belong  to  the 
different  parts,  could  ever  say,  with  truth,  that  a  single 
portion  of  this  complicated  whole  was  useless.  There 
may  be  a  few  small  fibres,  or  other  minute  divisions  of 
the  human  frame,  the  use  of  which  he  might  not  be  able 
exactly  to  define ;  but  no  one,  who  possesses  skill  in  his 
profession,  or  a  just  sense  of  the  imperfections  of  human 
knowledge,  would  ever  affirm  that  a  single  fibre  was,  in 
reality,  without  its  legitimate  and  determined  function. 

Now  if  we  apply  the  same  mode  of  reasoning  to  the 
faculties  of  the  mind,  we  may  easily  prove,  that  each  has 
its  appropriate  sphere  of  action,  from  the  single  circum- 
stance of  its  being  implanted  in  our  nature.  As  our  eyes 
were  formed  for  seeing,  and  our  feet  for  walking,  so  was 
the  faculty  of  reason  implanted,  to  enable  us  to  improve 
in  moral  and  religious  truth,  to  detect  the  errors  of  soph- 
istry, and  to  arrive  at  just  conclusions  in  all  the  employ- 
ments and  concerns  of  life.  And  what  sublimer  subjects 
can  engage  our  attention,  than  those  of  religion  ?  What 
concerns  exercise  our  reason,  or  occupy  our  thoughts,  upon 
which  more  depends,  both  in  the  present  and  a  future 
world  ?  The  inventions  of  the  arts  and  sciences,  and 
all  those  things  which  administer  to  the  comfort  and  ease 
of  life,  may  employ  our  intellectual  faculties,  but  these 
are  but  earthly  cares.  The  pleasures  of  this  life  are  like 
the  bright  days  of  winter,  of  flattering  aspect,  but  of  short 
duration,  while  the  joys  of  heaven  flow  from  a  fountain 
which  is  inexhaustible  in  its  nature,  and  never  ruffled  by 
commotion.  Virtue  alone  can  procure  that  independence, 
which  is  the  end  of  human  wishes. 

Perhaps,  however,  the  duty  of  exercising  reason  in  the 
concerns  of  religion,  receives  the  highest  confirmation 


FREE  INQUIRY  AS  RESPECTS  RELIGION.  13 

from  the  example  of  our  blessed  Savior.  We  can  no- 
where find,  in  the  volume  of  inspiration,  a  single  precept 
to  be  influenced  in  our  faith  by  the  authority  of  men, 
rather  than  by  the  conviction  of  our  own  minds.  Our 
Lord  and  Master  was  always  ready  to  submit  his  creden- 
tials to  the  examination  of  all.  He  always  appealed  to 
the  judgment  of  his  hearers,  and,  instead  of  demanding  a 
blind  obedience  to  the  precepts  he  delivered,  proved  to 
them  the  authority  of  his  mission  by  the  miracles  he  per- 
formed. Do  the  multitude  doubt  his  power  over  the 
confines  of  the  grave,  immediately  he  utters  the  solemn 
and  memorable  words,  "Lazarus,  come  forth,"  and  the 
grave  gives  up  its  dead.  Do  they  distrust  his  power  to 
heal  the  infirmities  of  the  sick,  or  to  restore  the  power  of 
walking  to  the  lame  ?  No  sooner  does  he  utter  the  com- 
mand, "  Take  up  thy  bed  and  walk,"  than  the  lame  man 
rises,  and  returns  to  his  house.  Before  his  awful 
summons,  the  demons  are  deprived  of  all  their  influence ; 
at  his  command,  the  withered  hand  is  restored  to  vigor, 
and  the  blind  receive  their  sight.  In  short,  the  whole 
Bible  seems  clearly  to  testify,  that  our  Savior  required 
the  exercise  of  reason  in  its  fullest  extent.  He  reproves 
the  unbelieving  Jews  for  the  confidence  they  reposed  in 
the  Scribes  and  Pharisees,  who  were  their  spiritual 
guides,  and  exhorts  them  to  examine  for  themselves. 
"But  I,"  says  Christ,  "have  greater  witness  than  that 
of  John ;  for  the  works  that  the  Father  hath  given 
me  to  finish,  the  same  works  that  I  do  bear  witness  of 
me,  that  the  Father  hath  sent  me."  Such,  too,  I  might 
easily  show,  was  the  method  of  instruction  used  by  the 
apostles.  They  claimed  not  to  be  received  without  suf- 
ficient evidence  of  their  authority  ;  and  it  is  the  advice  of 
St.  Paul,  "  Prove  all  things  ;  hold  fast  that  which  is  good." 
It  appears,  then,  that  all  who  discourage  freedom  of 
inquiry  encroach  upon  the  natural  rights  of  mankind, 


14  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

and  oppose  their  own  authority  to  that  of  Christ  and  his 
apostles.  I  might  easily  mention  many  practices  in  the 
Christian  church  which  have  evidently  this  tendency. 
But,  as  they  are  well  known  to  my  learned  and  highly 
respected  audience,  it  is  unnecessary  to  mention  them, 
and  sufficient  to  notice  some  of  their  dangerous  conse- 
quences. And  it  is  obvious  to  remark,  that  they  tend 
to  check  all  religious  knowledge  and  improvement,  to 
confine  the  mind  in  useless  chains  and  fetters,  and  to 
entail  ignorance  and  superstition  upon  posterity.  These, 
and  many  other  inconveniences,  are  hardly  to  be  bal- 
anced by  the  advantages  which  these  practices  seem  to 
afford.  It  is  asserted,  however,  that  all  these  endeavors 
to  restrain  free  inquiry,  have  been  made  with  the  purest 
intentions,  and  most  disinterested  motives ;  that,  by  these 
means,  the  church  has  been  preserved  from  heretics, 
and  those  who  are  unsound  in  faith ;  those,  in  other 
words,  who  have  never  been  accustomed  to  measure 
their  piety  by  the  number  of  speculative  principles  to 
which  they  could  subscribe  their  names ;  or  those  who 
have  not  imbibed  their  sentiments  from  the  confessions 
of  men,  but  from  the  oracles  of  GOD. 

The  spirit  of  free  inquiry,  like  most  other  blessings, 
has  been  sometimes  carried  to  excess,  and  it  is  a  mel- 
ancholy truth,  that  so  powerful  are  the  allurements  of 
novelty  and  singularity,  and  so  overbearing  the  love  of 
reputation  for  uncommon  learning,  that  men  are  some- 
times found  weak  enough  to  imagine  that  they  can  never 
think  with  sufficient  freedom  and  independence,  till  they 
have  rejected  all  that  has  been  believed  by  their  pred- 
ecessors ;  men  who  support  their  pride  and  evil  inclina- 
tion, by  endeavoring  to  undermine  the  sacred  fabric  of 
religion,  instead  of  adding  new  pillars  to  support  its 
weight  But  these  instances  are  not  extremely  frequent, 
and  men  are  more  prone  to  embrace  the  opinions  of  a 


FREE  INQUIRY  AS  RESPECTS  RELIGION.  15 

court  or  majority,  and  blindly  to  follow  their  spiritual 
guides,  than  to  expose  themselves  to  the  danger  of  losing 
the  road  to  preferment  and  favor,  while  searching  after  the 
path  that  leads  to  truth. 

There  is  a  necessity  of  encouraging,  rather  than  of 
depressing,  a  spirit  of  free  and  impartial  inquiry ;  and  I 
hold  it  as  a  maxim  no  less  applicable  to  religion  than  pol- 
itics, that  few  persons,  who  have  once  tasted  the  honey 
of  favor,  will  readily  consent  to  return  to  hunger  and 
philosophy. 

I  shall  now  attempt  briefly  to  answer  some  of  the 
objections,  which  have  been  made  against  the  principle  I 
support.  It  has  sometimes  been  asserted,  that  a  free 
examination  has  a  dangerous  tendency  to  disturb  the 
peace  of  the  church  with  erroneous  opinions  and  heresies, 
and  that  it  exposes  religion  to  the  attacks  of  rash  and 
unprincipled  infidels.  This  objection  seems  grounded 
upon  the  supposition,  that  our  religion  is  of  such  a 
nature,  that  it  will  not  bear  the  test  of  examination,  and 
that  he,  who  investigates  its  principles,  will  necessarily  be 
led  to  dangerous  conclusions ;  and  that  his  reason,  instead 
of  enlightening  the  path  which  leads  to  truth,  will  con- 
duct to  error.  But  is  it  the  province  of  reason  to  mis- 
lead ?  Does  history  justify  the  conclusion  ?  Is  it  not 
rather  her  province  to  enlighten  the  ways  of  science,  to 
"  illumine  what  is  dark,"  and  to  detect  what  is  erroneous  ? 
If  our  religion  be  founded  in  truth,  it  has  nothing  to  fear 
from  impartial  examination.  Like  a  rock  in  the  midst  of 
the  ocean,  the  waves  of  infidelity,  and  the  violence  of 
passion,  may  dash  against  its  sides,  but  it  will  remain 
unmoved.  The  clouds  of  scepticism  may  hover  round  its 
surface,  but  it  will  still  remain  amidst  all  the  gloom  with 
with  it  is  surrounded.  It  may  be  concealed  for  a  season 
by  the  fog  of  error  or  superstition,  but  the  full  sunshine 
of  reason  will  at  last  dissipate  the  darkness. 


16  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

To  magnify  the  dangers  of  free  inquiry,  is  tacitly  to 
confess  that  we  doubt  the  truth  of  the  system  we  support. 
Opinions  founded  in  reason  and  revelation,  have  nothing 
to  fear  from  the  minutest  investigation.  The  better  they 
are  understood,  the  more  shall  we  discover  of  their  intrin- 
sic excellence ;  the  better  they  are  known,  the  greater 
will  be  our  approbation.  It  is  the  nature  of  falsehood 
alone  to  shun  the  light  of  day,  to  involve  itself  in  mys- 
tery, and  to  demand  belief  without  examination.  But 
truth  solicits  an  investigation,  and,  being  founded  in  the 
constitution  of  things,  must  ever  remain  the  same  while 
nature  herself  endures. 

The  doctrines  of  religion  may  sometimes  be  attacked 
by  violent  and  ignorant  opponents ;  but  this  is  an  evil, 
the  remedy  of  which  would  be  worse  than  the  disease. 
Religious  freedom  is  an  inestimable  blessing,  but,  like 
other  privileges,  is  attended  with  some  inconveniences. 
Our  most  exquisite  joys,  when  they  surpass  a  certain 
limit,  are  followed  by  the  most  painful  consequences ;  and 
our  most  valuable  mental  endowments  may  subserve  the 
cause  of  error  and  deception. 

Another  objection  is  drawn  from  the  unsettled  state  of 
mind,  which  is  supposed  to  attend  a  free  inquiry  in  the 
concerns  of  religion.  This,  however,  should  always  be 
expected,  since  our  faculties  are  limited,  and  there  are 
many  questions,  which  are  indeterminate  in  their  nature. 
But  the  same  difficulties  are  common  to  all  the  sciences, 
and  we  have  nothing  to  apprehend  from  this  source  ;  since 
questions  of  this  nature  are  generally  such  as  are  purely 
speculative,  and  possess  but  little  influence  on  practice. 

By  accustoming  ourselves  to  habits  of  close  examina- 
tion, we  may  possibly  lessen  the  number  of  our  tenets, 
but  I  doubt  whether  our  piety  will  be  diminished.  We 
may  lose  some  portion  of  our  respect  for  men,  but  our 
reverence  for  God  may  be  increased.  A  corrupt  govern- 


FREE  INQUIRY  AS  RESPECTS  RELIGION.  17 

ment  may  attempt  to  destroy  the  liberty  of  the  press, 
because  it  serves  to  expose  the  baseness  of  their  conduct, 
or  to  enlighten  the  public  mind.  A  corrupt  and  preju- 
diced ecclesiastic  may  likewise  conceal  his  ambition  under 
the  veil  of  piety,  or  rise  to  eminence,  because  the  people 
are  too  ignorant  to  detect  the  imposition,  or  too  enslaved 
to  resist  his  measures.  Yet  the  freedom  of  the  press  must 
always  be  regarded  as  the  palladium  of  our  civil  liber- 
ties, and  free  inquiry  as  the  only  security  from  fraud  and 
delusion. 

But,  though  I  think  there  is  but  little  weight  in  all  the 
objections,  which  have  or  can  be  made  against  freedom 
of  inquiry,  still  I  am  of  opinion  that  it  should  be  con- 
ducted with  prudence  and  moderation.  There  have  been 
too  many  contentions  for  victory  instead  of  truth,  too  many 
attempts  to  support  a  party  instead  of  religion ;  and 
too  much  zeal,  uninfluenced  and  undirected  by  charity. 
Those,  who  have  engaged  in  controversies,  have  often 
displayed  more  of  temper  than  argument,  and  a  zeal 
"  which  was  not  according  to  knowledge."  Instead  of 
"  speaking  the  truth  in  love,"  they  have  uttered  their  sen- 
timents in  the  tone  of  anger  and  resentment.  In  short, 
polemic  skill  must  always  be  regarded  as  a  dangerous 
qualification,  and,  if  not  governed  by  charity,  wisdom,  and 
integrity,  may  betray  the  possessor  into  intemperate  zeal, 
or  absolute  indifference  for  truth.  Every  object  assumes 
an  importance,  in  our  estimation,  in  proportion  to  the 
labor  and  attention  we  bestow.  But  the  real  value  of  any 
doctrine  can  be  determined  only  by  its  influence  on  the 
conduct  of  man  with  respect  to  himself,  his  fellow  crea- 
tures, and  his  God.  And  it  has  been  well  observed,  by  an 
author,  that "  some  kinds  of  error  are  so  intimately  con- 
nected with  truth  and  virtue,  as  to  render  the  separation 
of  them  impracticable  without  doing  violence  to  both." 
It  is  better,  therefore,  according  to  our  Savior's  advice,  to 


18  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

permit  a  few  tares  to  grow  up  with  the  wheat,  than  to 
endanger  the  destruction  of  the  wheat  by  rooting  up  the 
tares. 

It  now  remains  to  make  some  application  of  the  senti- 
ments above  advanced  to  our  own  condition. 

If  any  class  of  persons  are  under  an  obligation  to 
examine  with  care  and  attention  the  truths  of  our  holy 
religion,  it  is  certainly  the  duty  of  those  who  are  favored 
with  the  means  of  intellectual  and  moral  improvement. 

"  To  whom  much  is  given,  of  him  shall  much  be  required," 
is  a  sacred  declaration,  but  no  less  sacred  than  reasonable 
and  important.  If  it  be  ever  necessary,  that  we  should 
entertain  correct  views  of  the  doctrines  and  precepts  of 
religion,  the  time  has  certainly  arrived,  when  we  should 
commence  the  duty  to  be  performed. 

There  is  a  becoming  respect,  with  which  we  should  treat 
the  opinions  of  our  parents  or  early  instructors,  and  those 
from  whom  we  imbibed  our  first  sentiments.  This  is  but 
a  just  tribute  to  parental  affection,  and  superior  informa- 
tion and  experience.  But  there  is  a  season  when  we 
should  examine  for  ourselves,  and  inquire  into  the  founda- 
tion of  the  sentiments  which  we  have  embraced.  We 
need  never  blush  to  maintain  opinions,  which  differ  from 
those  of  our  parents  and  connections,  if  they  have  been 
.adopted  upon  sufficient  evidence. 

To  promote  and  encourage  this  impartial  inquiry,  is  one 
of  the  objects  of  this  society ;  and  as  our  future  conduct 
must,  in  no  small  degree,  depend  upon  the  sentiments  we 
here  embrace,  it  can  surely  be  esteemed  a  duty  of  no 
minor  consideration,  that  we  endeavor,  by  reason  and 
application,  and,  above  all,  by  the  kind  assistance  of  our 
Maker,  to  discover  those  principles,  which  will  guide  us 
safely  in  our  future  career,  and  cultivate  that  spirit  of 
piety,  the  exercise  of  which  constitutes  no  inconsiderable 
portion  of  the  Christian's  happiness.  It  is  vain  and  dan- 


FREE  INQUIRY  AS  RESPECTS  RELIGION.  19 

gerous  to  suppose,  that  we  can  live  in  safety  without  any 
religious  sentiments.  The  human  mind  resembles  a  piece 
of  ground,  which  will,  by  no  means,  be  wholly  barren,  but 
will  either  bring  forth  the  noxious  weeds  of  vice,  or  the 
wholesome  fruits  of  righteousness,  according  as  it  is 
neglected  or  cultivated  with  care.  The  short  period  we 
here  devote  to  the  services  and  the  duties  we  owe  our  God, 
cannot  but  be  attended  with  improvement. 

The  prayer,  in  which,  we  here  engage,  has  a  greater 
tendency,  than  more  public  forms  of  devotion,  to  revive, 
and  fasten  upon  our  minds,  the  general  principles  of 
religion.  We  are  here  permitted  to  particularize  our 
necessities  and  wants  in  a  greater  degree  than  is  practi- 
cable in  the  house  of  public  worship;  and  it  should 
always  be  remembered,  that  all  forms  of  public  adoration 
are  less  interesting  than  services  of  the  kind  in  which  we 
engage;  and  that  the  ardor  of  devotion  is  better  sup- 
ported, and  the  sympathy  more  easily  propagated,  through 
a  small  assembly  connected  by  ties  of  familiarity  than  in 
the  presence  of  a  mixed  congregation. 

As  the  clangers  to  which  youth  is  exposed  seem  to  arise 
rather  from  thoughtlessness  and  levity  than  from  any 
prejudice  against  religion,  if  we  habituate  ourselves  to 
abstract  our  thoughts  from  the  external  objects  which  sur- 
round us,  and  with  the  intellectual  eye  to  examine  our 
own  minds,  we  shall  not  only  correct  this  dangerous  habit, 
and  fix  our  wavering  thoughts  and  resolutions,  but  accom- 
plish another  important  end  of  the  society  to  which  we 
belong.  Religion  is  a  subject  upon  which  our  present  and 
future  happiness  depends ;  and,  as  it  is  often  the  topic  of 
conversation  and  controversy,  to  have  a  comprehensive 
view  of  its  evidences,  and  to  be  able  to  assign  the  reasons 
of  our  belief,  should  be  the  desire  of  all. 

Having  once  obtained  this  object,  we  shall  feel  an 
assurance  in  our  faith,  which  all  the  arts  of  infidelity  will 


£0  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

be  unable  to  destroy.  For  unbelievers  can  only  go  round 
and  round  the  same  topics  in  an  eternal  circle,  without 
advancing  a  single  step.  It  produces  no  new  forces;  it 
only  brings  those  again  into  the  field,  which  have  been 
already  baffled  and  subdued.  Let  us  not  be  prevented 
from  the  performance  of  our  religious  duties  by  the  com- 
mon complaint,  that  we  have  not  time  for  the  services  of 
religion.  The  cares  and  avocations  of  this  life  are  often 
urged  as  an  excuse  for  our  neglects,  but  they  will  have 
but  little  weight  with  him  who  reflects  that  we  are  placed 
in  this  world  only  to  prepare  for  another,  and  that  the 
troubles  and  solicitude  of  our  earthly  career  are  so  many 
trials  of  our  patience  and  fortitude.  But  we  seem  ever 
ready  to  forget  that  an  unruffled  flow  of  pleasures  is  not 
to  be  expected,  and  that  there  is  no  pursuit  so  important 
and  interesting  as  to  afford  a  continual  subject  of  medita- 
tion, and  to  employ  all  the  powers  and  faculties  of  our 
nature,  except  eternity.  But,  if  we  consider  this  world  as 
only  a  passage  to  a  more  perfect  state,  and  as  a  removal 
from  a  scene  of  confusion  and  discord  to  one  of  everlasting 
peace  and  happiness, 

"  To  die  is  landing  on  some  silent  shore, 
Where  billows  never  beat,  nor  tempests  roar, 
Ere  well  we  feel  the  friendly  stroke,  'tis  o'er." 

He  who,  with  such  prospects  before  him,  can  complain 
of  heaven,  and  repine  at  death,  acts  a  part  no  less  absurd 
than  he  who,  proposing  to  himself  a  delightful  tour  into 
an  unknown  country,  should  lament  that  he  cannot  take 
up  his  residence,  and  remain  forever  at  the  first  noisy  and 
inconvenient  inn  he  meets  with  on  the  road. 

From  the  above  observations,  we  may  likewise  perceive 
the  importance  of  acquiring  all  that  knowledge  and  infor- 
mation, which  may  lead  us  to  entertain  just  views  of  the 
important  subjects  of  religion,  and  enable  us  to  expose  the 


FREE  INQUIRY  AS  RESPECTS  RELIGION.  21 

"traditions  of  men."  Ignorance  is  the  road  which  is  gen- 
erally travelled  by  the  idle,  and  we  should  always  preserve 
a  caution  that  we  never  mistake  a  lazy  and  blind  devo- 
tion for  an  enlightened,  generous,  and  industrious  piety. 
But  let  us  think  no  knowledge  so  important  as  that  which 
pertains  to  religion.  The  glory  which  letters  bestow  is, 
no  doubt,  greatly  desirable  \  yet  it  is  difficult  to  acquire. 
It  is  much  easier  to  live  a  life  of  virtue  than  a  life  of 
fame.  We  pardon  a  man  though  he  be  undignified  in 
his  manners  and  address,  and  unacquainted  with  all  the 
elegances  of  polite  literature,  but  we  never  forgive  him, 
if  he  be  deficient  in  goodness  and  honesty  of  character. 
On  this  subject,  we  perfectly  accord  with  Themistocles, 
who  observed,  "that  he  loved  the  man  without  letters 
much  better  than  letters  without  the  man."  If  we  owe 
much  to  the  fathers  of  our  bodies,  how  much  more  are  we 
indebted  to  those  who  have  formed  our  minds  ?  For  the 
knowledge  of  letters  has  a  favorable  tendency  to  produce 
within  us  just  sentiments,  elegant  manners,  and,  what  is 
far  more  important,  to  enable  us  to  defend  our  religion. 

That  the  world  contains  no  substantial  happiness,  that, 
without  the  expectation  of  another,  the  soul  has  nothing 
upon  which  it  may  repose  itself,  is  a  common  observation ; 
but,  though  it  be  confirmed  by  a  variety  of  examples,  it 
seems  to  have  but  little  influence  upon  our  lives.  The 
more  we  know  of  the  world,  its  phantoms  and  enchant- 
ments, the  more  do  we  feel  the  want  of  some  grand  idea 
to  elevate  the  soul  above  the  discouragements  which  con- 
tinually occur.  When  we  engage  in  the  pursuits  of  honor, 
fame,  and  gratitude,  we  find  everywhere  illusions  and  mis- 
takes. If  we  make  no  uncommon  exertion,  and  leave  our 
vessel  in  the  harbor,  the  success  of  others  dazzles  and 
disturbs  us;  if  we  spread  our  sails,  we  are  the  plaything 
of  the  winds.  Activity,  inactivity,  ardor,  indifference,  all 
have  their  cares  and  difficulties.  No  person  is  sheltered 


2£  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

from  the  caprices  of  fortune.  Her  wheel  is  forever  in 
motion.  We  tremble  on  its  summit,  in  the  middle  we  are 
suspended,  and,  at  the  bottom,  we  are  trampled  under 
foot.  When  we  have  reached  the  summit  of  our  wishes, 
sadness  and  languor  are  preparing  to  frustrate  our  hopes, 
and  dissipate  the  enchantment.  If  such  then  be  the 
instability  of  the  world,  and  the  uncertainty  of  all  earthly 
possessions,  to  whom  shall  we  go  but  unto  God  ?  And 
how  shall  we  obtain  his  mercy  but  through  the  merits  of 
his  Son  ?  It  is  virtue  alone  which  can  render  us  superior 
to  fortune,  and,  if  we  quit  her  standard,  the  combat  is  no 
longer  ours.  Let  not  then  the  important  work  of  salva- 
tion be  longer  neglected. 

But  the  prayer  of  too  many  is,  "Lord,  make  me  virtu- 
ous and  continent,  but  not  too  soon."  "Wait,  I  beseech 
thee,  till  the  season  of  pleasure  be  passed,  and  the  ardor 
of  passion  subsided."  "The  time  will  come  when  I  shall 
have  little  inclination  for  vice,  and  when  satiety  and  dis- 
gust will  prevent  all  danger  of  a  relapse."  To  ask  in  such 
a  manner,  is,  indeed,  to  ask  in  vain.  If  we  would  find  our 
God,  we  must  seek  him  early.  How  often  have  we  wit- 
nessed the  danger  of  postponing  the  duties  of  religion ! 
With  how  many  lessons  for  youth  has  experience  fur- 
nished us  !  Let,  then,  our  solicitude  be  in  some  propor- 
tion to  our  danger.  Let  us  make  it  the  important  busi- 
ness of  our  lives  to  fix  the  purest  and  most  sacred  princi- 
ples in  our  hearts,  and  lay  the  foundation  of  that  solid 
peace  through  life,  which,  once  lost,  is  never  perfectly 
recovered ;  not  even  under  the  direction  of  the  brightest 
understanding,  and  most  fervent  piety.  If  such  be  our 
conduct,  we  shall  have  but  little  reason  to  find  fault  with 
the  difficulties  of  this  life.  Those  who  utter  the  loudest 
complaints  have  generally  wasted  or  misimproved  their 
time.  "'If  the  tumult  of  your  souls,"  says  St.  Austin, 
"would  subside,  you  would  not  be  moved  by  outward 


FREE  INQUIRY  AS  RESPECTS  RELIGION.  23 

noises.  When  the  mind  is  calm,  the  confusion  of  outward 
objects  is  disregarded.  In  this  happy  state  of  the  soul, 
neither  the  clouds  which  fly  around  us,  or  even  the  thun- 
der which  rolls  over  our  heads,  is  able  to  disturb  her  seren- 
ity. Safe  in  the  port,  she  beholds,  but  feels  not,  the 
tumult."  "  Behold,  now  is  the  accepted  time ;  behold, 
now  is  the  day  of  salvation. 


DISSERTATION 

ON    THE    IMPORTANCE    OF    THE    DOCTRINE    OF    A    FUTURE    STATE. 
One  of  the  Subjects  of  the  Bowdoin  Prize  Dissertations  for  1814. 

"  He  that  cometh  to  God,  must  believe  that  he  is ;  and  that  He  is  a  rewarder  of  them  that  diligently 
seek  Him."— HEBREWS  x.  6. 

IN  religion,  as  in  the  arts  and  sciences,  there  are  a  few 
important  principles,  which  serve  as  the  support  and 
foundation  of  all  the  rest.  The  great  object,  therefore,  of 
the  inquirer  after  truth  should  be,  to  ascertain,  in  every 
science,  which  is  the  subject  of  his  examination,  what  are 
its  fundamental  truths.  Having  satisfied  himself  in  this 
important  inquiry,  he  has  laid  a  solid  basis,  and  will  be 
able,  without  much  difficulty,  to  raise  the  superstructure. 

As  religion  is  a  concern  not  confined  to  any  particular 
class  of  people,  but  universal  in  its  obligations,  and  ever 
salutary  in  its  effects,  it  is  a  circumstance  which  deserves 
our  warmest  gratitude  to  the  Parent  of  the  universe,  that 
its  two  essential  constituents  are  so  clearly  manifested  to 
mankind,  that  they  are  discoverable  by  the  light  of  rea- 
son. The  existence  of  one  God,  and  a  future  state  of 
rewards  and  punishments,  form  the  grand  basis  of  this 
interesting  and  important  science.  He  who  would  destroy 
or  weaken  the  evidence  of  either  of  these  doctrines,  aims 
a  deadly  blow  at  the  peace  and  happiness  of  mankind. 
To  exemplify  and  display  the  influence  of  the  persuasion 
of  a  future  state  of  recompenses  upon  the  order  and  well- 
being  of  society,  is  the  design  of  the  following  dissertation. 


DOCTRINE  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE.  25 

To  the  Christian,  who  reflects  how  numerous  have  been 
the  endeavors  of  unbelievers,  in  every  age,  to  overturn 
this  important  doctrine,  and  to  prove  it  to  be  the  vain 
imagination  of  the  enthusiast,  and  how  ingenious  have 
been  the  attempts  of  the  profligate  and  wicked,  to  demon- 
strate the  fallacy  of  an  opinion,  which  they  tremble  to 
believe  as  true,  it  can  afford  no  small  degree  of  satisfaction, 
that  the  basis  of  the  Christian's  hopes  is  no  less  supported 
by  reason  than  revelation,  and  that  the  infidel  must  destroy 
the  dictates  of  reason,  as  well  as  the  authority  of  revealed 
religion,  before  he  can  demolish  or  undermine  the  firm,  fab- 
ric of  his  faith.  Those,  who  have  wished  to  prove  that  the 
present  life  is  the  whole  duration  of  our  existence,  and  thus 
to  destroy  the  validity  of  revelation,  have  argued,  that  the 
ancients  had  no  expectation  of  a  future  state  of  recompen- 
ses, by  comparing  their  different  opinions  with  one  another, 
and  showing  the  diversity  of  sentiment,  which  prevailed 
amongst  them.  Should,  however,  the  endeavors  of  this 
class  of  sceptics  be  crowned  with  complete  success,  and 
should  it  be  demonstrated,  that  Aristotle,  Plato  and  Cicero, 
had  all  different  ideas,  and  confused  notions  of  a  future 
world ;  still,  this  mode  of  arguing  can  have  no  influence 
upon  this  interesting  inquiry.  A  sufficient  answer  to  all 
such  unbelievers,  is,  that,  prior  to  philosophy,  or  the  exist- 
ence of  the  school-men,  there  was  everywhere  a  common 
consent  on  the  subject  of  a  future  state ;  and  should 
philosophy  claim  the  honor  of  having  discovered  this 
important  doctrine,  its  claims  should  be  rejected,  and  we 
shall  probably  be  indebted  to  tradition  for  this  interesting 
truth.  Now  that  such  was  the  common  persuasion  of 
mankind,  prior  to  revelation,  is  clearly  proved  from  the 
appeal  which  is  made  by  every  writer  on  the  subject,  to 
the  common  consent  of  men,  which  is  always  used  as  one 
of  their  chief  arguments.  This  almost  universal  agree- 
ment is  the  voice  and  law  of  nature,  because  that  of 


26  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

which  are  all  persuaded,  must  have  had  a  common  origin, 
and  must,  therefore,  have  proceeded,  in  the  first  instance, 
from  the  Parent  of  mankind.  The  fictions  of  the  poets, 
and  subtleties  of  the  philosophers  of  antiquity  upon  this 
subject,  are  well  known ;  but,  however  the  notion  may 
have  been  confused  by  them,  the  common  consent  of  the 
universe,  and  the  evidence  of  nature,  are  the  same,  and, 
though  entangled  by  perplexities,  can  never  be  extin- 
guished. The  rational  proofs  of  a  future  state  can  never 
be  lost  upon  the  sincere  and  pious  Christian ;  and,  since 
such  is  the  preeminence  of  reason,  that  no  opinion  is  to 
be  credited  when  contrary  to  its  dictates,  the  man  of  virtue 
and  religion  will  feel  no  small  gratification,  when  he  dis- 
covers, that  every  part  of  revelation  is  grounded  upon 
truth  and  reason.  As  it  is  the  beauty  of  the  laws  by 
which  a  sovereign  governs  the  people  of  a  country,  that 
they  be  established  upon  the  immutable  nature  and  con- 
stitution of  man,  so,  likewise,  it  is  the  excellency  of  the 
Christian  dispensation,  that  all  the  doctrines  it  contains, 
are  not  only  reasonable,  but  so  admirable  in  their  nature, 
as  no  reason  could  discover. 

Among  the  doctrines  of  revelation,  that  of  a  future 
state  of  rewards  and  punishments  is  one ;  and  when  the 
Christian  finds  that  reason  conspires  with  revealed  religion, 
requires  the  same  important  duties,  and  enforces  them  by 
the  same  motives,  with  the  additional  advantage  on  the 
; side  of  revelation,  that  it  teaches  us  our  whole  duty;  the 
'Christian,  I  say,  when  he  calls  to  mind  all  these  circum- 
stances, must  feel  a  complacency  and  delight,  which  are 
wholly  unknown  to  one  who  has  never  observed  this 
.perfect  harmony  and  order. 

Having  premised  the  above  observations  upon  the  uni- 
versality of  the  belief  of  a  future  state,  I  proceed  to 
consider  what  is  the  immediate  object  of  the  dissertation, 
viz.,  its  influence  upon  the  order  and  well-being  of  society; 


DOCTRINE  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE.  £7 

and,  in  prosecuting  my  design,  I  know  of  no  more  effec- 
tual method  of  showing  its  vast  importance,  to  the  peace 
and  happiness  of  mankind,  than  by  proving  the  insuffi- 
ciency of  all  other  motives  to  piety  and  virtue.  Such  is 
the  frame  of  our  nature,  and  so  violent  are  the  passions 
of  mankind,  -that  he,  who  should  destroy  the  belief  of  the 
doctrine  of  a  future  life  of  recompenses,  would  abolish 
almost  every  motive'  to  decency  and  order,  and  fill  the 
world  with  every  species  of  vice  and  immorality.  He 
who  attempts  to  overturn  the  religious  sentiments  of  any 
class  of  believers,  must  always  presume,  that  those,  whose 
opinions  he  has  controverted,  will  ask  of  him  some  new 
principles,  which  they  may  substitute,  in  the  place  of  those 
which  he  has  rejected  with  so  much  confidence.  Accord- 
ingly, we  find,  that  this  method  has  been  pursued  in  the 
controversy  between  the  advocates  of  the  truth  of  reve- 
lation, and  those  who  have  rejected  the  divine  authority 
of  Jesus  Christ,  and  the  latter,  with  much  ingenuity  and 
skill,  have  substituted  every  motive,  which  their  imagina- 
tions could  suggest.  Since,  however,  in  the  commence- 
ment of  their  arguments,  they  had  rejected  the  only 
powerful  consideration  to  piety  and  religion,  their  endeav- 
ors have  been  unsuccessful,  and  no  principle  has  been 
discovered,  or  alleged,  which,  like  a  state  of  future  recom- 
penses, operates  at  all  times,  and  upon  all  descriptions  of 
persons. 

It  has  not  unfrequently  been  asserted  that,  though 
there  were  no  belief  of  a  future  state  impressed  upon  the 
minds  of  men,  yet  that,  since  God  is  a  being  of  infinite 
wisdom  and  unbounded  goodness,  mankind  ought,  and 
naturally  would,  adore  and  worship  him,  for  these  and 
other  inestimable  perfections.  It  is  the  argument  of 
some,  that,  from  the  impulse  of  nature,  we  respect  and 
esteem  the  wise  and  virtuous  of  the  earth,  and  that, 
from  the  same  principle,  we  should  be  led  to  worship  and 


28  WORKS   OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

to    reverence  the  Maker  and  Preserver  of  the  universe 
without  the  intervention  of  a  revelation. 

That  mankind  owe  unbounded  gratitude,  love  and 
adoration,  to  him,  who  formed  and  upholds  the  world, 
will  not  be  denied  ;  but  that  the  perfections  of  his  charac- 
ter alone  are  sufficient  to  ensure  the  performance  of  these 
and  other  duties,  is  contradicted,  both  by  the  testimony 
of  experience,  and  the  consideration  that  the  great  mass 
of  the  people  are  not  influenced  by  the  contemplations 
and  speculations  of  philosophers,  but  by  the  passions  which 
reign  within  their  own  breasts.  Every  argument  drawn 
from  the  perfections  of  the  Deity,  and  the  propriety  of 
worshipping  him  on  their  account,  is  of  no  great  weight 
when  opposed  to  the  passions  and  inclinations  of  mankind. 
Self-love  is  the  great  handle  by  which  religion  takes  hold 
of  the  fears  and  affections  of  mankind.  The  same  person 
wrho,  under  the  persuasion  that  death  was  the  extinction 
of  his  being,  would  defile  himself  with  every  species  of 
vice,  when  assured  of  the  certainty  of  a  future  state  of 
recompenses,  would  sacrifice  his  disorderly  passions  to  his 
duty,  and  lead  a  rational  and  virtuous  life.  Should  it  be 
said,  that  virtue  and  piety,  to  be  acceptable  to  God,  must 
proceed  from  purer  motives  than  a  servile  fear  of  punish- 
ments, I  answer,  I  am  of  the  same  opinion.  But  may  not 
this  fear  in  early  life,  sow  the  seeds  of  future  piety  and 
devotion?  May  not  the  man,  who  once  acted  chiefly 
from  an  apprehension  of  punishment,  after  a  contempla- 
tion of  the  goodness  of  God  and  the  duties  which  he  owes 
to  so  benevolent  a  Father,  be  actuated  by  nobler 
motives?  He,  on  the  other  hand,  who  has  grown  to 
manhood,  under  the  impression  that  he  shall  never  be 
required  to  answer  for  his  conduct,  will,  at  that  period  of 
his  life,  when  reason  is  able  to  discover  his  obligations  to 
his  Maker,  be  destitute  of  those  restraints  upon  his  pas- 
sions and  inclinations,  which  are  experienced  by  him,  who 


DOCTRINE  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE.  29 

has  been  educated  under  the  opposite  impression.  While 
the  latter  comes  to  examine  the  truths  of  religion,  unin- 
fluenced by  importunate  inclinations;  the  former  coming 
to  the  examination  under  the  influence  of  prejudices, 
which  he  is  unwilling  to  resign,  and  under  the  govern- 
ment of  desires  and  feelings,  which  it  is  irksome  to 
sacrifice  to  reason  and  propriety,  will  readily  seek  for 
objections  to  those  doctrines,  which  he  wishes  to  be  false, 
slight  all  objections  to  the  opposite  opinions,  and  probably 
end  the  examination  with  a  full  conviction  of  the  fallacy 
and  unimportance  of  religion. 

The  insufficiency  of  every  motive,  except  that  of  a 
future  state,  to  lead  men  to  the  worship  and  reverence  of 
God,  and  to  a  conduct  conformable  to  his  will,  is  most 
clearly  proved  by  the  concurrent  testimony  of  history. 
To  form  hypotheses,  when  we  possess  the  richest  stores  of 
information,  derived  from  a  knowledge  of  antiquity,  is 
useless  and  absurd.  In  confirmation  of  the  preceding 
observations,  we  find,  that,  in  Greece  and  Rome,  there 
were  some  philosophers,  who  believed  in  the  immortality 
of  the  soul,  and  hence  inferred  the  probability  of  future 
recompenses;  but  we  likewise  discover,  that  the  lower 
classes  of  the  community  seldom  perplexed  themselves 
with  the  speculations  of  philosophers,  and  were  almost 
wholly  regardless  of  the  consequences  to  be  deduced 
from  the  nature  of  the  soul;  and  we  have  the  authority 
of  Cicero  for  saying,  that  the  thoughts  of  Socrates,  him- 
self, upon  the  immortality  of  the  soul,  were  both  fluctua- 
ting and  undetermined.  The  generality  of  the  people 
felt  no  interest  in  the  subtleties  of  philosophy,  and  would 
certainly  be  at  no  trouble  to  discover  the  truth  of  a 
doctrine,  which  must  either  produce  a  change  of  conduct, 
or  fill  them  with  fears  and  apprehensions  for  their  future 
welfare.  The  worship  of  one  G  od  is  established  in  almost 
all  parts  of  the  habitable  globe,  because  almost  all  are 


30  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

possessed  of  a  belief  in  a  future  state  of  rewards  and 
punishments,  and  he  who  should  destroy  this  belief,  would 
probably  abolish  every  form  of  worship.  Though  it  be 
true,  that  it  is  the  will  of  God  that  we  should  adore  and 
reverence  his  name,  yet  the  greater  part  of  mankind  are 
too  gross  in  their  ideas  of  things,  and  too  much  enchained 
by  the  allurements  of  the  world,  to  be  influenced  by 
this  consideration  alone ;  and  whoever  expects  universal 
obedience  from  any  arguments  wholly  addressed  to  the 
understanding  of  the  human  race,  must  be  grossly  igno- 
rant of  human  nature. 

I  come  now  to  consider  another  motive  to  piety  and 
virtue,  and  which  has  been  exalted  to  an  high  elevation 
in  the  writings  of  those,  who  have  denied  a  future  state, 
viz.,  a  sense  of  honor  and  decorum.  Though,  in  the  esti- 
mation of  different  persons,  this  term  seems  to  have  a 
variety  of  senses,  I  know  of  none  better,  than  that  of  a 
celebrated  writer,  who  defines  the  laws  of  honor,  to  be 
"a  system  of  rules  constructed  by  people  of  fashion,  to 
facilitate  their  intercourse  with  one  another."  Whatever 
candid  person  reflects,  for  a  moment,  how  few  are  influ- 
enced by  the  laws  of  honor,  and  how  many  shelter  them- 
selves under  those  of  the  land,  which,  like  Solon's,  may 
possibly  detect  some  daring  offenders,  but,  like  cobwebs, 
permit  the  greater  number  to  escape  with  impunity,  will 
hardly  be  so  unfair,  as  to  compare  honor,  as  a  principle  of 
virtue,  with  a  future  state  of  recompenses.  He,  who  has 
offered  every  argument  in  favor  of  its  claims,  must  con- 
fess, that  the  sphere  of  its  influence  is  extremely  limited, 
and  that,  though  this  principle  might  have  some  influence 
upon  men  of  rank  and  elevated  station,  still  that  the 
greater  part  of  mankind  are  left  wholly  without  the  circle 
of  its  operation. 

But,  after  all  that  can  be  said  in  favor  of  reputation,  or 
the  laws  of  etiquette,  how  are  those  rules  of  conduct 


DOCTRINE  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE.  31 

worthy  of  much  consideration,  which  have  no  other  stand- 
ard than  custom,  or  the  fashion  of  the  day  ?  If  our  con- 
duct is  to  be  directed  by  rules  of  this  kind,  those  actions, 
which,  in  one  age  or  period,  are  esteemed  innocent,  or  even 
praise-worthy,  may  possibly,  in  the  next,  or  at  another 
period,  be  considered  as  highly  criminal.  Indeed,  with- 
out some  other  standard,  by  which  to  judge  of  the  pro- 
priety of  our  conduct,  wre  may  fall  into  the  grossest 
absurdities,  and  the  most  dangerous  practices.  The  state 
may  be  deprived  of  its  most  eminent  warriors  and  states- 
men, by  the  destructive  habit  of  duelling,  and  he  who 
meets  disappointments  or  vexations  in  life,  may,  without 
the  infringement  of  any  law,  terminate  his  existence  by 
suicide. 

The  punishments  of  civil  government,  will,  equally 
with  the  common  opinion  of  the  community,  to  which 
any  person  belongs,  be  too  weak  to  ensure  safety  and 
peace  either  to  the  individual  or  magistrate.  The  rod, 
which  is  in  the  hand  of  the  civil  governor,  and  the  sword 
which  is  wielded  by  public  opinion,  will  be  hardly  suf- 
ficient to  check  the  inroads  of  vice,  or  ensure  the  per- 
formance of  moral  duties.  It  is  obvious  to  remark,  that 
the  influence  of  laws  is  confined  within  a  narrow  circle, 
and  that  a  person  may  escape  their  animadversion,  and, 
at  the  same  time,  be  stained  with  some  of  the  foulest 
actions. 

The  deficiency  of  laws  seems  to  arise  chiefly  from  two 
causes.  First,  that  many  actions  are  wholly  without  the 
sphere  of  their  operation,  because  they  possess  no  dis- 
criminate character,  by  which  they  may  be  defined. 
Secondly,  because  they  are  in  their  nature  such  as  may 
easily  be  evaded.  He  who,  with  respect  to  the  laws  of 
the  civil  magistrate,  is  blameless,  may  still  be  destitute  of 
humanity  and  benevolence,  may  plunge  his  afflicted 
country  into  unnecessary  wars,  in  order  to  render  his 


3£  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

services  desirable,  may  be  treacherous  in  his  friendships, 
and  indeed  destitute  of  every  active  virtue.  The  impor- 
tant duties  of  charity  and  humility  may  have  never 
influenced  one  action  of  him,  who  in  the  eye  of  the  law 
is  wholly  free  from  guilt. 

The  excellent  doctrines  of  our  holy  religion,  on  the 
other  hand,  while  they  ensure  the  perfect  security  and 
encouragement  of  the  sovereign,  teach  those  humbler, 
but  not  less  important  duties,  which  constitute  the  glory 
and  happiness,  both  of  the  individual,  and  the  community. 
In  case,  however,  these  obligations  should  be  disregarded, 
it  does  not  appeal  to  the  imperfect  authority  of  a  human 
sovereign,  but  to  the  tribunal  of  an  almighty  Judge.  The 
sentence  of  the  former  may  be  influenced  by  a  variety 
of  motives,  which  may  effect  our  deliverance,  though  not 
restore  our  innocence,  but  in  the  latter  case  we  stand 
before  a  Judge  of  infinite  wisdom,  and  unbounded  good- 
ness, but  of  perfect  justice. 

As,  in  all  these  instances,  the  penalties  of  human  laws 
may  be  evaded,  and  the  guilty  escape  with  impunity; 
so  there  are  many  actions,  concerning  which  we  can  only 
be  interrogated  at  the  tribunal  of  our  own  consciences. 
And  yet  conscience  itself  is  a  mere  name,  a  mere  bug- 
bear, independent  of  the  notion  of  a  future  retribution. 
Let  us  be  cautious,  then,  how  we  weaken  the  authority  of 
a  Judge  so  faithful,  energetic,  and  enlightened.  Let  us 
reflect,  that,  when  we  have  overturned  his  powerful 
empire,  we  have  opened  the  flood-gates  of  licentiousness 
and  vice ;  that  the  cement  is  loosened,  the  cohesion 
broken,  and  that  the  torrent  of  immorality  and  wicked- 
ness must  rise  superior  to  every  barrier. 

Indeed,  the  supposition  that  public  opinion  can  ever 
subdue  the  power  of  inclination,  or  restrain,  within  due 
bounds,  the  violence  of  passion,  seems  wholly  unsupported 
by  fact.  Such  an  hypothesis  is  contradicted  by  the  very 


DOCTRINE  OF  A  FUTURE    STATE.  33 

nature  of  man,  who,  in  order  to  persevere  in  the  paths  of 
rectitude,  must  be  influenced  by  some  adequate  motive. 
Besides,  those  who  are  chiefly  the  objects  of  public  atten- 
tion, are  not  the  low  and  impotent,  but  those  who  have 
attracted  the  admiration,  or  drawn  upon  themselves  the 
detestation,  of  the  public,  by  eminent  services,  or  notori- 
ous frauds.  The  opinion  of  the  world  exercises  its  au- 
thority over  those,  whose  rank  or  employment  throws 
some  splendor  upon  their  earthly  career ;  while  the  con- 
duct of  the  private  individual  is  less  within  the  circle  of 
its  influence.  Those,  therefore,  whose  time  is  devoted  to 
dissipation,  and  whose  behavior  has  no  connexion  with 
the  grand  interests  of  the  community,  are,  in  some 
measure,  independent  of  the  opinion  of  the  world.  Their 
actions  are  confined  to  too  humble  a  condition  to  excite 
public  admiration,  or  to  draw  forth  much  censure  and 
rebuke.  Thus  a  large  portion  of  every  community  who 
are  distinguished  by  no  ornaments  of  riches  or  privilege 
of  title,  are  uninfluenced  by  this  love  of  reputation,  or 
desire  of  fame,  which  has  been  ranked  as  so  important  a 
principle  by  many  writers.  "Every  thing  valuable  seems 
therefore  to  depend  upon  religion.  It  surrounds  the 
whole  compass  of  morality,  resembling  that  universal 
and  mysterious  force  of  physical  nature  which  retains  the 
planets  in  their  orbits,  and  subjects  them  to  a  regular  rev- 
olution, and  which,  amidst  the  general  order  it  maintains, 
escapes  the  observation  of  many,  and  appears  to  their 
feeble  sight  unconscious  of  its  own  work." 

Much  has  been  written  upon  the  loveliness  of  virtue, 
and  the  intrinsic  excellency  of  certain  actions,  and  the 
deformity  of  vice,  and  yet  the  observation  and  experience 
of  mankind  unite  to  prove  that,  however  the  world  may 
admire,  or  be  enamored  of  virtue,  she  is  seldom  chosen. 
Though  I  could  never  discover  any  internal  goodness  or 
immorality  in  actions,  independent  of  the  motives  with 


34  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

which,  they  were  performed,  yet  it  is  not  denied  that  some 
are  found  to  lead  to  happiness,  while  others  tend  to  make 
us  miserable.  Those  of  the  former  class  may  therefore 
be  figuratively  denominated  virtuous,  and  those  of  the 
latter  immoral,  and  destructive  of  happiness.  Now  it 
seems  somewhat  absurd,  if  not  impious,  to  extol  the 
beauty  and  excellency  of  virtue,  and  yet  to  suppose  that, 
with  all  her  claims  to  notice  and  consideration,  a  Being 
who  delights  in  goodness  has  been  regardless  of  her  claims,, 
and  made  no  difference  between  herself  and  her  irrecon- 
cilable enemies,  vice  and  immorality.  He,  who  believes 
in  the  goodness  of  GOD,  must  be  mad  to  suppose  that  he 
can  view  vice  and  virtue  with  the  same  feelings.  Yet 
upon  the  supposition  that  this  life  is  the  whole  duration 
of  our  existence,  we  are  compelled  to  admit  the  conclu- 
sion that  virtue  loses  her  reward,  and  that  vice  is  com- 
pletely successful.  It  is  the  test  of  a  true  patriot,  when 
private  advantage  is  opposed  to  public  good,  to  sacrifice 
his  own  convenience  to  that  of  society.  So  likewise  we 
may  denominate  him  virtuous,  who,  when  duty  and  incli- 
nation are  at  variance,  sacrifices  his  propensity  to  the 
dictates  of  reason.  If,  however,  mankind  are  actuated  by 
no  apprehensions  of  future  consequences,  it  is  no  hard 
matter  to  predict  which  of  these  two  principles  of  action 
will  prevail.  If  virtue,  without  the  authority  she  acquires 
from  the  consideration  of  a  future  life,  be  opposed  to  vice, 
with  all  the  passions  on  her  side,  it  would  be  absurd  to 
suppose  that  she  could  possibly  succeed  against  such  pow- 
erful enemies,  united  by  a  common  interest.  Over- 
powered by  superior  force,  she  must  soon  be  vanquished, 
and  leave  the  field  in  the  possession  of  her  lawless  and 
barbarous  invaders.  Many  writers  who  have  endeav- 
ored to  prove  that  the  consideration  of  a  future  state  of 
recompenses  is  unnecessary  to  the  support  of  piety  and 
virtue,  seem  to  have  had  very  indeterminate  notions  of 


DOCTRINE  OF  A  FUTURE    STATE.  35 

these  important  qualities  in  the  Christian  character.  They 
do  not  consist  of  show  or  ostentation,  or  in  performing  a 
few  hasty  and  benevolent  actions,  while  under  the  influ- 
ence of  some  violent  emotion.  Virtue,  or  an  upright  con- 
duct towards  our  fellow-beings,  and  temperance  as  it 
respects  ourselves,  depends  upon  religion  as  its  chief 
support ;  and  he  who  destroys  the  confidence  of  another 
in  a  future  state,  has  taken  from  him  the  vital  princi- 
ple of  his  virtue.  Those  w}io  maintain  the  opposite  opin- 
ion seem  never  to  have  considered  that  piety  is  an  in- 
ternal principle  of  the  heart;  and  that  those  who  are 
flattered  for  their  benevolence  or  liberality  are  often  des- 
titute of  all  true  virtue. 

There  are  but  few  who  are  so  hardened  as  to  commit 
such  crimes  as  both  reason  and  the  laws  condemn  in  the 
full  sunshine  of  day;  because,  though  possibly  they  might 
escape  the  cognizance  of  law,  yet  the  natural  sense  of 
right  and  wrong  found  amongst  all  classes  would  condemn 
such  actions,  and  the  perpetrators  be  thus  exposed  to  dis- 
grace and  ignominy.  But  since  it  is  not  always  day,  and 
since  there  is  the  greatest  necessity  for  some  internal  prin- 
ciple which  is  obligatory  at  all  times,  and  upon  all  descrip- 
tions of  persons,  but  little  reflection  must  be  sufficient 
to  convince  us  that  all  others  are  insufficient,  and  that 
a  future  state  of  recompenses  alone  is  able  to  effect 
this  important  end.  It  is  this  alone  which  can  restrain 
the  dangerous  machinations  of  him  who  would  subvert 
the  laws  of  his  country.  It  is  this  alone  which  can 
defeat  the  wicked  designs  of  the  robber,  murderer,  or  thief, 
and,  without  this  belief  to  influence  the  actions  of  man- 
kind, every  species  of  vice  and  immorality  must  prevail. 
Without  this  fear,  the  unprincipled  ruler  may  destroy  the 
best  interests  of  his  country  with  impunity,  and  the 
ambitious  general  has  nothing  to  prevent  his  rendering 
himself  absolute  as  soon  as  he  can  obtain  the  consent  of 


36  WORKS  OF    S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

that  army  upon  which  he  depends  for  his  support.  In 
short,  were  this  principle  banished  from  the  world,  all 
confidence  and  security  in  our  fellow  beings  would  be 
lost  in  the  general  confusion  which  must  ensue. 

Should  it  be  said  that  the  natural  consequences  of  vice 
in  this  world  are  themselves  sufficient  to  ensure  the  vic- 
tory to  sobriety  over  immorality  and  licentiousness,  and 
that  such  are  the  salutary  effects  of  virtue,  that,  to  be 
admired,  she  needs  but  to  be  known,  I  answer  that  these 
natural  consequences  may,  with  justice,  be  alleged  as 
proof  of  the  manner  in  which  GOD  considers  the  virtu- 
ous and  the  vicious ;  but  are  certainly  insufficient  of  them- 
selves to  maintain  the  supremacy  of  piety  and  virtue. 
How  numerous  are  the  instances  of  persons  ruined  in 
their  fortunes,  and  depressed  by  sickness,  on  account  of 
the  irregularities  of  their  past  lives,  and  yet,  how  many 
do  we  find  rushing  inconsiderately  into  the  same  excesses, 
through  looseness  of  principle,  or  the  violence  of  passion ! 
In  other  words,  how  many  do  we  find  "who  need  the  smart 
of  pain,  to  make  them  prudent"!  Whatever  may  have 
been  the  losses  or  sufferings  of  others,  in  the  same  career, 
many  will  be  always  found  who,  having  never  made  the 
experiment,  will  be  led  to  believe  that  they  shall  be  more 
successful. 

Indeed,  without  the  assurance  or  presumption  of  a 
future  state,  indulgence  in  sensual  gratifications  would 
hardly  deserve  the  name  of  criminal ;  since  the  Governor 
of  the  universe,  upon  that  supposition,  makes  no  distinction 
between  the  virtuous  and  the  vicious ;  and  I  see  no  suffi- 
cient reason  why,  upon  that  supposition,  we  should  not 
adopt  the  language  of  the  sensualist,  "Let  us  eat  and 
drink,  for  to-morrow  we  die."  To-morrow  we  cease  to 
exist,  like  the  beasts  which  perish;  and,  whatever  may 
have  been  our  conduct  in  this  world,  our  condition  after 
death  will  be  the  same ;  since  death  is  an  eternal  sleep. 


DOCTRINE  OF  A  FUTURE    STATE.  37 

Upon  the  hypothesis  that  the  present  life  is  the  whole 
of  our  existence,  the  wicked  are  completely  successful, 
while  those  of  the  opposite  character  must  be  exposed  to 
ridicule  and  disgrace  as  solitary  beings,  who  are  contin- 
ually perplexing  themselves  with  possibilities,  and  passing 
their  lives  in  a  manner  both  disagreeable  and  absurd. 
Besides,  it  should  never  be  forgotten  that  there  are  many 
actions  highly  criminal  in  their  nature,  which  raise  the 
perpetrators  of  them  to  places  of  honor  and  distinction, 
instead  of  bringing  upon  them  the  punishment  they  so 
justly  deserve.  The  unprincipled  usurper,  for  instance,  is 
found  to  make  his  way  to  empire  by  the  most  barbarous 
and  disgraceful  actions,  and  afterwards  to  enjoy  those 
privileges  which,  in  justice,  belong  only  to  the  lawful 
heir.  The  opulent  and  powerful  baron  has  been  often 
known  to  oppress  his  numerous  dependents,  and  yet  to 
escape  the  penalty  of  law,  through  the  affluence  of  riches, 
or  magnitude  of  authority.  While  mankind  have  the  fear 
of  a  state  of  future  recompenses  to  influence  their  conduct, 
the  unfortunate  and  impotent  have  some  protection  and 
security  against  the  wiles  of  the  crafty  and  oppressive ; 
but,  without  this  restraint,  they  must  be  exposed  to  every 
species  of  injury  and  insult. 

It  here  seems  worthy  of  observation,  that  those  writers, 
who,  denying  a  future  state  of  recompenses,  have  affirmed 
that  a  belief  in  it  is  unnecessary  to  the  support  of  morality, 
have  an  advantage  over  those,  who  maintain  the  opposite 
opinion,  which  is  hardly  discerned  at  first,  and  which  often 
passes  wrholly  unnoticed.  For  those  several  motives, 
which  they  have  substituted  in  the  place  of  rewards  and 
punishments,  would  be  of  but  little,  if  any  weight,  when 
deprived  of  the  support,  which  they  derive  from  the  same 
doctrine  which  they  have  attempted  to  prove  fallacious. 
Our  opponents,  therefore,  to  reason  with  justice  and  can- 
dor, ought  not  to  allege  these  motives  as  they  now  exist 


38  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

in  the  minds  of  those  who  enjoy  the  light  of  revelation, 
but  should  look  for  them,  as  they  exist  in  that  portion  of 
the  world  which  has  never  been  visited  by  the  genial 
influence  of  religion,  and  to  those  dark  regions  which 
have  never  been  illuminated  by  the  glorious  light  of  reve- 
lation. They  will  find,  upon  inquiry,  that,  before  the 
world  had  been  favored  by  the  Christian  dispensation, 
amongst  the  most  polished  nations  of  antiquity,  their 
sense  of  decency  and  decorum  was  not  so  delicate,  but  it 
would  admit  of  the  grossest  obscenities,  and  actions  too 
offensive  to  be  named ;  that  their  sense  of  virtue  was  not 
so  strong  and  determinate,  but  it  would  admit  of  the  expo- 
sure of  helpless  infants  and  aged  parents,  whenever  the 
infirmities  of  their  nature,  or  the  lapse  of  years,  had  ren- 
dered the  latter  unfit  for  the  common  business  and  duties 
of  active  life;  that  their  conceptions  of  the  gods  were 
not  so  accurate  and  just,  but  they  would  allow  them  to 
suppose,  that  they  felt  no  interest  and  concern  in  the 
affairs  of  mortals ;  in  short,  that  their  sense  of  honor  was 
not  so  enlightened,  but  it  would  lead  one  of  their  most 
polished  scholars  and  philosophers  to  remark,  that  "sui- 
cide was  the  noblest  privilege  which  the  gods  had  conferred 
on  man."  When,  therefore,  our  opponents  assert  that 
the  opinions  and  principles,  which  men  must  naturally 
imbibe  from  their  intercourse  with  each  other,  would 
afford  a  sufficient  encouragement  to  good  morals  and 
religion,  they  forget  that  all  these  principles  are  derived 
immediately  from  the  doctrines  of  religion,  and  that 
connexion  which  subsists  between  the  creature  and  Crea- 
tor ;  and  that,  when  you  have  destroyed  religion,  you  have 
dried  up  the  fountain  from  which  these  opinions  are 
derived. 

The  instances  we  sometimes  discover  of  sceptics  who 
maintain  good  moral  characters,  has  been  likewise  urged 
to  prove  the  belief  of  a  future  state  unnecessary  to  the 


DOCTRINE  OF  A    FUTURE   STATE.  39 

support  of  virtue.  Other  reasons,  however,  than  the 
internal  loveliness  of  virtue,  may  easily  be  assigned  to 
account  for  this  phenomenon.  Religion  suffers  nothing 
from  the  discovery.  In  the  first  place,  those  unbelievers 
who  answer  to  this  description,  have  been  generally  per- 
sons who  had  acquired  habits  of  reflection  and  study,  and 
contracted  a  love  of  scientific  distinction,  and  had  few 
temptations  to  resist,  and  few  unlawful  desires  which  they 
wished  to  gratify.  As  they  were  removed  from  the 
bustle  of  the  world,  and  separated  from  those  who  might 
endanger  their  virtue,  so  they  have  been  seldom  found  to 
fall  into  gross  irregularities.  Where  this  has  not  been  the 
case,  their  conduct  has  been  as  wicked  and  profligate  as 
their  speculations  have  been  absurd  and  impious.  Bol- 
ingbroke  may  serve  as  a  remarkable  example,  and  strik- 
ing illustration  of  the  truth  of  this  remark.  Persons  of  the 
above  description  have  often  avoided  the  extremes  of 
profanity,  drunkenness,  or  debauchery;  but  they  have 
likewise  been  destitute  of  those  excellent  feelings  of  the 
mind,  and  those  nicer  emotions  of  the  heart,  which  dis- 
tinguish and  exalt  the  most  humble  Christian. 

In  the  second  place,  it  is  worthy  of  remark,  that  unbe- 
lievers of  the  class  now  under  consideration  have  been 
generally  speculative  men,  and  members  of  some  sect, 
whose  opinions  they  were  bound  to  defend ;  and,  as  it 
has  been  their  wish  to  increase  their  number,  they  have 
preserved  that  course  of  conduct,  which  has  the  greatest 
tendency  to  secure  this  end.  Few  of  them  have  ever 
been  in  places  of  high  responsibility  and  trust,  subject  to 
be  seduced  from  the  path  of  rectitude  by  flattery  and 
intrigue,  or  exposed  to  the  temptations  of  interest,  or  the 
dangers  of  pride  and  vanity.  They  were  content  with 
their  humble  condition,  and  have  seldom  risen  to  the  hon- 
ors of  the  world,  which  are  justly  termed  the  precipices  of 
virtue.  I  know  of  no  greater  incitement  to  diligence  and 


40  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

circumspection  than  that  impulse  of  the  soul,  which  always 
actuates  him  who  meets  opposition  to  prove  the  sound- 
ness of  his  principles  by  the  propriety  and  virtue  of  his 
conduct. 

Vice  and  immorality  are  not  the  only  evils  which  arise 
from  the  disbelief  of  a  future  state  of  recompenses ;  but 
mankind  would  be  extremely  miserable,  were  not  this 
doctrine  founded  in  truth.  The  virtuous,  but  unfortunate 
person,  when  afflicted  by  the  rod  of  the  tyrant,  or  the 
injustice  of  the  powerful,  consoles  himself  with  the  reflec- 
tion that  this  world  is  not  his  eternal  home,  or  lasting 
residence ;  but,  through  a  state  of  trial,  that  the  time  will 
come  when  the  whole  human  race  shall  be  rewarded 
according  to  their  works,  by  a  Judge  of  impartial  justice 
and  infinite  knowledge.  Upon  the  supposition  that  there 
is  no  state  of  future  recompenses,  reason,  far  from  being 
a  blessing  or  privilege  to  our  species,  must  be  considered 
as  a  quality  of  the  mind,  which  serves  no  other  purpose, 
but  to  disappoint  and  render  us  unhappy.  It  would  serve 
as  a  lamp  to  light  us  to  our  solitary  dungeon  at  our  death, 
there  to  be  deprived  of  existence,  and  never  to  rise  again. 
The  assurance  of  non-existence  after  death  might  liberate 
the  wicked  from  those  gloomy  apprehensions  and  fears 
which  disturb  the  guilty  mind ;  yet  the  better  part  of  the 
community  must  be  deprived  of  their  best  hopes,  which 
illuminate  the  dark  and  dreary  path  of  life,  and  refresh 
the  weary  traveller  at  every  stage  of  his  long  and  tire- 
some pilgrimage.  Every  advantage  arising  from  this 
unreasonable  supposition,  belongs  to  the  profligate  and 
wicked ;  that  class  of  persons,  in  every  community,  which 
nothing  but  the  apprehension  of  extreme  punishment  in 
a  future  world,  can  induce  to  sacrifice  a  single  gratifica- 
tion to  the  peace  and  happiness  of  society.  Persons  of 
all  descriptions  would  be  extremely  unhappy,  though  the 
wise  and  virtuous  would  lose  more  of  their  enjoyments 


DOCTRINE  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE.  41 

than  the  hardened  and  abandoned  sinner.  Those  who 
had  devoted  themselves  to  the  pleasures  and  vanities  of 
life  would,  at  the  approach  of  death,  be  very  reluctant  to 
leave  a  world  of  enjoyment  for  a  dark  and  gloomy  grave; 
which  must  forever  terminate  their  existence.  The  vir- 
tuous, who  had  long  endured  all  the  sufferings  of  an 
earthly  residence,  and  had  been  comforted,  in  every  adver- 
sity, with  the  hopes  of  a  happier  existence  beyond  the 
tomb,  when  told  that,  after^  death,  they  were  to  rise  no 
more,  would  be  struck  with  astonishment  and  dismay  ; 
and  their  reason  would  exalt  them  above  the  brutes 
only  to  increase  the  sum  of  human  misery.  By  a  kind 
disposition  of  Providence,  the  brute  creation  are  unable 
to  foresee  the  approach  of  death,  and  are  therefore 
deprived  of  no  portion  of  present  happiness  by  gloomy 
apprehension.  But  death,  which,  to  the  Christian,  is  often 
a  place  of  refuge  from  the  trials  and  persecutions  of  the 
world,  to  him  who  disbelieves  the  immortality  of  the  soul, 
can  afford  but  a  gloomy  prospect.  Whatever  may  be  said 
of  the  wisdom  of  the  heathens,  before  the  glorious  light 
of  revelation  had  burst  upon  the  world,  it  cannot  be 
denied,  that,  with  no  other  guide  but  reason,  we  may  fall 
into  dangerous  errors  on  the  subject  of  religion.  Revela- 
tion has  displayed,  with  all  the  brightness  and  splendor 
of  noonday,  those  truths,  which  were  but  imperfectly 
viewed  through  the  dim  twilight  of  reason.  Reason, 
when  applied  to  religion,  is  the  sun  in  an  eclipse; 
but  revelation  is  the  sun  shining  with  his  meridian 
splendor.  Amongst  heathen  moralists,  there  prevailed 
great  diversity  of  opinion  on  man's  identity,  and  so 
discordant  were  their  sentiments  upon  this  and  many 
other  questions  with  respect  to  the  body  after  death, 
that  many  were  induced  to  reject  the  doctrine  of  the 
immortality  of  the  soul,  as  the  dogma  of  some  philoso- 
pher. Their  ideas  upon  the  nature  and  duration  of  a 
future  state  were  confused  and  indeterminate,  while  the 


42  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

Christian  can    contemplate,  with    confidence    and    assur- 
ance, the  existence  and  enjoyments  of  a  future  world. 

He,  who  imagines  himself  the  child  of  blind  and 
undiscerning  chance,  has  formed  too  grovelling  an  idea  of 
his  own  nature,  to  permit  him  to  aspire  to  virtue  and  dis- 
tinction. He  possesses  a  temporary  faculty,  which  is 
denominated  reason,  but  it  is  only  to  light  him  to  the 
grave,  and  there  to  vanish  for  eternity.  He  has  a  soul 
capable  of  great  improvement,  and  vast  expansion,  but  it 
is  only  to  continue  during  its  infancy,  and  perishes  before 
it  can  produce  those  salutary  fruits,  which  fill  the  mind 
with  insatiable  delight. 

Though  man  is  the  most  excellent  part  of  this  lower 
creation,  and  though  his  intellectual  faculties  give  him,  in 
this  world,  a  vast  superiority  over  the  rest  of  the  beings 
of  the  earth,  yet  he  is,  on  some  accounts,  the  least  pro- 
vided for,  if  there  be  no  future  state.  For  what  encourage- 
ment would  there  be,  to  sacrifice  private  interest  to  pub- 
lic good,  or  to  deny  present  appetites  and  passions  ? 
What  inducement  to  practise  self-denial,  and  to  seek  the 
happiness  of  particular  persons,  if  there  be  no  future  state 
of  recompenses?  What  profit  would  be  derived  from 
the  cultivation  of  our  minds,  and  advancement  in  knowl- 
edge, if  the  progress  of  it  is  to  end  at  death,  and  can  last 
no  longer?  To  be  assured  that  our  souls  are  immor- 
tal, revives  the  drooping  spirits,  and  fills  the  mind  with 
unspeakable  delight.  How  pleasing  is  the  thought,  that  we 
are  to  live  beyond  the  grave,  and  that  our  condition,  in 
that  state  of  existence,  will  depend  upon  our  conduct  in 
the  present ;  that  there  is  no  respect  of  persons,  and  that, 
in  that  scene,  the  weary  traveller  finds  a  heavenly  home  ! 
Having  burst  asunder  the  chains  which  confine  the  soul, 
and  divested  ourselves  of  the  external  garment,  how 
pleasing,  how  consoling,  is  the  thought,  that  we  shall  be 
clothed  with  an  immortal  robe !  The  greatest  anxiety, 
the  severest  pains,  which  can  surround  a  death-bed,  are 


DOCTRINE  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE.  43 

the  fears  of  future  punishments ;  but,  if  the  soul  can  cast 
itself  upon  God,  and  place  an  entire  confidence  in  the 
Rock  of  Ages,  death  is  then  no  more  than  a  sigh,  or  a 
short  passage,  from  a  world  of  trouble  and  perplexity,  to 
a  world  of  immortality  and  endless  felicity. 

Thus  have  I  completed  what  I  designed  to  say,  upon 
the  important  and  interesting  subject  of  a  future  state. 
That  the  above  observations  are  very  obvious  and  com- 
mon, and  that  the  whole  composition  has  probably  many 
faults  and  imperfections,  the  writer  has  little  doubt.  That 
the  subject,  too,  is  but  in  part  unfolded,  and  that  many 
important  observations,  which  arise  from  it  have  been 
omitted,  is  likewise  probable.  It  is  hoped,  however,  that 
its  complicated  nature,  and  its  various  connections  and 
dependencies,  will  serve,  in  some  measure,  to  extenuate 
those  imperfections.  Let  it  be  remembered,  that  such  is 
the  nature  of  the  subject,  and  so  various  its  relations,  that 
a  full  investigation  could  hardly  be  expected  from  one, 
whose  attention  has  never  been  expressly  and  particu- 
larly devoted  to  the  numerous  and  interesting  subjects 
and  speculations,  which  belong  to  religion,  but  distracted 
with  a  variety  of  studies  and  pursuits.  It  is  now  sub- 
mitted, such  as  it  is,  to  the  candid  examination  of  those, 
whose  age  and  learning  have  supplied  them  with  more 
enlarged  views,  but  who  are  not  unmindful  of  the  diffi- 
culties which  must  attend  the  pursuits  of  those,  who  are 
just  entering  within  the  mazes  of  science,  which  must 
necessarily  produce  some  uncertainty  and  confusion  of 
thought.  "Whatever  may  be  the  reception  or  fate  of 
this  performance,"  to  use  the  words  of  another,  "the  writer 
flatters  himself  with  the  reflection,  that  it  has  not  been 
wholly  without  advantage  to  himself,  and  that,  in  every 
stage  of  its  progress,  he  has  found  in  it,  that  alone,  which 
can  alleviate  our  pains,  or  give  a  zest  to  our  enjoyments, 
occupation,  and  engagement." 


A  DELIBERATIVE  DISCUSSION, 

ON     THE     EXPEDIENCY    OF     ENCOURAGING    MANUFACTURING    ESTABLISHMENTS   IN 
THE  UNITED   STATES. 

IT  has  generally  been  thought  that  our  country  is  not 
yet  ready  to  engage  in  manufactures  with  success.  This 
opinion,  which  was  expressed  by  some  of  our  ablest 
writers,  when  our  present  government  was  formed,  has  lost 
but  little  of  its  truth  by  change  of  circumstances.  So 
long  as  the  strength  of  a  nation  consists  in  the  wealth, 
numbers  and  character  of  its  people,  and  manufactures 
are  found  to  be  incompatible  with  these  objects  of  national 
grandeur  and  prosperity,  so  long  it  is  no  less  the  duty 
than  the  policy  of  our  citizens,  to  discourage  them.  A 
successful  prosecution  of  domestic  manufactures  can  be 
the  offspring  only  of  an  overflowing  population,  and  ample 
capitals,  but  is  impracticable  for  the  United  States,  con- 
taining extensive  tracts  of  territory,  which  require  but 
the  hand  of  industry  to  produce  the  most  abundant  fruits. 
American  manufactures  will  never  increase  our  wealth, 
while  our  population  is  yet  small,  and  the  price  of  labor 
extremely  high.  Our  citizens  will  never  consent  to  sacri- 
fice all  the  elegant  and  beautiful  productions  of  European 
ingenuity,  to  humor  the  caprice,  or  to  flatter  the  vanity,  of 
any  class  of  politicians,  who,  like  the  enlightened  philoso- 
phers of  China,  imagine  their  own  country  to  be  a  sort  of 
paradise,  amidst  a  degenerate  and  impoverished  world ; 
the  seat  of  all  that  is  elegant  in  literature,  profound  in 
science,  or  grand  in  nature.  Whatever  may  be  said  of 


MANUFACTURES  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES.  45 

that  noble  independence  which  our  country  would  enjoy, 
if  it  had  no  intercourse  with  foreign  nations,  the  prudent 
politician  will  ever  remember  the  useful  maxim,  "that 
national  honor  should  never  be  viewed  as  distinct  from 
national  interest."  The  pursuit  of  independence,  undi- 
rected by  prudence,  is  a  blind  and  romantic  passion,  and 
some  reasons  may  be  alleged  to  show  that  it  is  even  desir- 
able that  our  country  should,  in  a  degree,  depend  upon 
other  nations.  A  situation  .of  this  nature  restrains  the 
violence  of  passion,  and  curbs  that  arrogance  and  national 
pride  which  are  generated  by  prosperity,  and  not  unfre- 
quently  induce  the  corrupt  and  unjust  ruler  to  invade  the 
unoffending  provinces  of  neighboring  empires.  Com- 
merce, which  must  always  be  regarded  as  the  most  fruit- 
ful source  of  national  wealth,  should  never  be  impeded 
by  the  encouragement  of  domestic  manufactures.  But  all 
the  advantages  to  be  derived  from  foreign  intercourse  may 
be  lost,  if,  through  a  blind  attachment  to  the  productions 
of  our  own  country,  we  neglect  to  form  commercial  rela- 
tions with  the  nations  of  Europe  in  this  infancy  of  our 
Republic.  When  they  have  once  discovered  that  our 
commerce  is  not  necessary,  either  to  their  subsistence  or 
prosperity,  it  may  be  too  late  to  obtain  the  advantages  of 
their  trade.  The  dews  of  the  morning  will  have  passed, 
and  we  shall  vainly  attempt  to  pursue  the  chase  by  the 
meridian  splendor.  I  am  not  anxious  to  accelerate  the 
approach  of  that  period,  when  our  citizens,  instead  of 
enjoying  in  security  the  beauties  of  nature,  shall  be  envel- 
oped in  the  smoke  of  factories,  or  be  dizzied  with  the  ham- 
mering of  presses,  the  clatter  of  engines,  and  the  whirling 
of  wheels;  when,  instead  of  gamboling  and  sporting  in 
the  rich  ocean  of  commerce,  they  shall  be  compelled  for- 
ever to  behold  the  expert  and  active  seaman  transformed 
to  the  teamster;  and  the  rapid  and  majestic  motion  of  the 
merchant  vessel  exchanged  for  the  slow,  dull  creaking  of 


46  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

the  wagon.  If,  therefore,  our  agriculture  and  commerce 
should  be  lost  in  an  experiment  to  try  how  well  our  coun- 
try would  succeed  without  them,  there  is  reason  to  appre- 
hend that  our  situation  would  be  indeed  deplorable,  and 
that  we  should  become  a  nation  of  ferocious  and  stupid, 
and,  at  the  same  time,  poor  and  sordid  barbarians,  with- 
out enjoyment  and  without  hope.  Private  interest  will 
ensure  the  wealth  and  prosperity  of  a  country  with  much 
greater  certainty  than  the  refinements  of  state.  The  mis- 
taken politician  may  imagine  that  he  has  augmented  the 
happiness  of  his  people  by  the  support  he  affords  to  one 
species  of  labor,  while  he  discourages  another ;  or  that  the 
desire  of  gain  will  be  more  ardent  when  cherished  by  the 
favor  of  public  authority;  but  in  reality  he  has  only 
attempted  to  increase  what  is  already  sufficiently  vehe- 
ment ;  "  he  has  dashed  with  his  oar  to  hasten  the  cataract, 
and  waved  with  his  fan  to  give  speed  to  the  winds." 

It  is  the  very  nature  of  manufactures  to  afford  but  a 
precarious  subsistence.  A  foreign  war,  or  a  change  of 
fashion,  (which,  of  all  things,  is  most  changeable,)  are  often 
sufficient  to  throw  thousands  out  of  employment,  and  to 
reduce  them  to  the  extreme  of  poverty.  A  person,  while 
toiling  in  a  factory,  is  exercising  no  faculties  of  his  mind 
or  body,  which  can  ensure  happiness  or  prosperity  in 
declining  years;  when  the  decrepitude  of  age  has  succeeded 
to  the  strength  of  manhood,  and  the  enfeebled  limbs 
refuse  to  fulfil  their  respective  offices.  In  short,  the  igno- 
rant and  impotent  manufacturer  has  been  justly  denomi- 
nated one  of  that  class  of  persons  whom  we  cannot  prove 
to  be  a  human  being  by  any  rational  characteristic,  but 
must  admit  to  be  so  by  a  sort  of  reductio  ad  abmrdum, 
because  he  cannot  possibly  be  anything  else  ;  and  I  think 
it  must  be  allowed  by  all,  that  the  eighteen  persons  who, 
in  an  European  factory,  are  engaged  in  manufacturing  a 
single  pin,  fulfil  an  office  which  requires  no  very  great 


MANUFACTURES  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES.  47 

exercise  of  the  faculties  of  the  mind.  These  and  other  cir- 
cumstances, which  might  be  mentioned,  cannot  be  favora- 
ble to  the  increase  of  population,  because,  whatever  im- 
poverishes the  parent,  incapacitates  him,  in  the  same  degree, 
for  the  maintenance  and  education  of  his  children.  In 
confirmation  of  this  remark,  it  is  computed  that,  in 
every  manufacturing  town  in  Europe,  not  one-third  of  the 
offspring  of  the  poor  arrive  at  maturity;  and  that,  in  Eng- 
land, whose  extension  of  commerce  and  refinement  in  the 
arts  during  the  last  century,  are  unparalleled  in  the  history 
of  nations,  the  number  of  paupers  in  the  same  period  has 
increased  in  a  fourfold  proportion,  and  is  now  rated  at  one- 
tenth  of  her  whole  population.  The  increase  of  our  pop- 
ulation by  the  emigration  of  foreigners  has  likewise  been 
alleged  as  a  reason  why  we  should  engage  in  the  support 
of  manufactures.  That  our  numbers  would  be  increased 
by  the  accession  of  foreigners,  who  might  transplant 
themselves  to  America  to  engage  in  the  pursuit  of  gain, 
will  not  be  denied ;  but,  before  I  can  assent  to  the  expe- 
diency of  such  a  measure,  I  must  be  convinced  that  our 
republican  institutions  are  sufficiently  firm  and  durable 
to  bear  the  ungoverned  violence  and  daring  innovations 
of  so  heterogeneous  a  mass  of  citizens.  Patriotism,  to 
become  a  powerful  principle,  must  be  impressed  upon  the 
mind  by  association  and  habit;  or  else  it  is  the  watch- 
word of  party,  or  a  factitious  spirit,  which  leads  to  disorder. 
But  how,  I  would  ask,  can  the  bosoms  of  those  glow  with 
an  enlightened  love  of  country,  who  visit  the  United 
States  only  to  increase  their  fortunes;  who  learn  only 
from  the  speeches  of  our  Presidents,  or  from  our  public 
prints,  that  they  are  our  countrymen ;  and  who  refuse  to 
contribute  to  the  support  of  government,  while  they  pos- 
sess a  full  share,  though  but  little  skill,  in  making  our 
rulers  ?  As  well  might  we  expect  political  virtue  and  an 
enlightened  mind  from  the  wandering  Arab,  or  Indian 


48  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

hunter,  as  from  the  foreign  artisan,  whose  only  knowledge 
is  that  of  his  profession,  whose  only  pursuit  is  gain.  Those 
kinds  of  manufactures  which  are  conducted  in  the  house- 
hold by  persons  under  the  inspection  of  guardians  and 
friends,  are  probably  highly  beneficial  to  our  country, 
because,  while  they  increase  its  wealth,  they  do  not  pollute 
the  morals,  nor  destroy  the  health.  But  those  kinds 
which  can  be  rendered  profitable  only  by  a  minute 
division  of  labor,  and  by  the  employment  of  women  and 
children  separated  from  the  care  of  connections,  I  cannot 
but  condemn.  I  can  discern  in  them  no  spirit  favorable 
to  our  republican  institutions;  no  circumstances,  which 
are  not  hazardous  to  the  morals,  the  patriotism,  the  happi- 
ness, and  the  lives  of  our  countrymen.  It  is  the  glory 
and  peculiar  blessing  of  our  country  that  its  inhabitants 
are  not,  like  some  of  the  European  nations,  grouped  in 
large  collective  bodies  ;  and  that  the  air  which  they 
breathe  is  uncontaminated  with  the  destroying  pestilence 
which  pervades  those  manufacturing  towns  and  cities 
which  overflow  with  numbers.  Places  of  this  description 
are  the  seats  of  all  that  is  hostile  to  civil  liberty,  to 
morality,  and  religion.  An  infuriated  populace  assumes  the 
sovereign  command,  and  the  virtuous  are  compelled  to 
enlist  under  their  banners,  because  they  are  unable  to 
resist  their  fury. 

In  seasons  of  public  disorder,  the  advice  of  such  as  pos- 
sess wisdom  and  integrity  will  be  disregarded.  The  cen- 
sure of  the  majority  will  be  dreaded,  and  their  favor 
sought.  For  the  punishments  inflicted  by  an  enraged 
multitude  are  just  causes  of  terror ;  and  there  are  but  few 
who  can  contemplate,  with  philosophical  composure, 

"  That  baleful  star,  whose  horrid  hair 
Shakes  forth  the  plagues  of  down  and  tar." 

If,  therefore,  good  morals  are  essential  to  the  preserva- 


MANUFACTURES  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES.  49 

tion  of  our  republican  institutions,  and  manufactures  have 
a  tendency  to  corrupt  them,  let  us  cordially  unite  in  the 
wish,  which  was  long  since  uttered  by  the  third  President 
of  the  United  States,  who,  while  contemplating,  with  the 
eye  of  unprejudiced  reason,  the  circumstances  of  our  coun- 
try, expressed  his  desire,  that,  "  while  we  have  land  to 
labor,  our  workshops  might  remain  in  Europe."  Let  us 
encourage  no  species  of  labor  which  is  incompatible  with 
the  security  and  happiness  of  our  country.  And,  may  the 
tree  of  liberty,  which  was  reared  and  nurtured  by  the  care 
of  our  pious  ancestors,  be  ever  guarded  by  the  vigilance, 
defended  by  the  energy,  and  protected  by  the  patriotism, 
of  their  descendants  I 


THESES  RHETORICS. 

RHETORICS  ORNATE  LOQUI,  ET  REBUS  VERBA  APTARE,  DOCET. 

Ut  naturae  jura  .prius  extiterunt,  quam  homines  societate 

conjunct!,  aut  mores  legibus  format!  sint,  sic  oratores 

fuerunt,   ante  quam   rhetores   dicendi   praacepta    tradi- 

dertmt 
Loquendi  consilia  sunt  quatuor ;  intellectui  lucem  afferre, 

imaginationem  delectare ;  animi  affectiones    excitare ; 

et  voluntatem  movere. 
Evolvendi  penitus   auctores,   qui  de  pietate,  fortitudine, 

temperantia,  et  philosophia  paecipiunt ;  et  rerum  pluri- 

marum  scientia  comprehendenda,  sine  qua  orator  frus- 

tra   eloquens  sit.     "  Nam    eloquentia    nihil    aliud  est, 

quam  copiose  loquens  sapientia." 
Omnis  orationis  vis  et  facultas  in  quatuor  partes  distrib- 

uta    est ;    invenire    quid    dicetur ;    inventa    disponere ; 

deinde  ornare   verbis ;    vel    inventa  eloqui ;    turn    ad 

extremum  agere  ac  pronuntiare  cum  dignitate  ac  venus- 

tate. 
Apud  antiques  genera  tria  orationis  fuerunt :  demonstra- 

tivum,  deliberativum?  et  judiciale. 
His' aliud  genus  concionale  nunc  adjectum,  quod  in  Dei 

templis  exercetur. 
Genus  demonstrativum  laudando  et   vituperando  utitur. 

In  genere  deliberative  quseritur,  quid  utile^  et  in  judi- 

cialij  quid  justum  sit. 
Homines  docere  et  emendare,  atque  eos  a  "  peccatorum 


THE  CONSTITUENTS  OF  RHETORIC.  51 

via  convertere,"  oratoris  Christian!  officium  praecipuum 

est.     Itaque  incumbat,  primurn  ut  ii,  qui  audiant,  cog- 

noscant,  quid  elegendum  et  quid  vitandum  sit ;  et  turn 

ad  extremum  virtutis  amore  arderent. 
Tres  sunt  facti  generales  status  ;  conjecturae,  finitionis,  et 

qualitatis ;  ^iut  tria  sunt,  quas  in  omni  disputatione  quae- 

runtur ;  An  sit,  quid  sit,  quale  sit. 
Partes  orationis  sunt  exordium,  propositio,  probatio,  ac 

peroratio. 
Rhetores  jubent  exordire  ita,  ut  eos,  qui  audiant,  benev- 

olos,  et  attentos,  et  dociles  reddemus. 
Deinde  rem  ita   proponere,  ut  verisimilis,  ut  aperta,  ut 

brevis  narratio  sit;  ut  auditores,  facile  cognoscant,  quid 

confirmandum,  aut  refutandum  sit. 
Omnis  probatio  constat  argumentis,  quae  ex  loco,  tempore, 

et  fine  ducantur. 
Peroratio  sequitur,  quae  rerum  repetitione  et  congregatione 

constat.    Hie  si  usquam,  totos  eloquentiae  aperire  fontes, 

et  hie  auditorum  animos  possidere,   totaque   pandere 

possumus  vela. 
Pronuntiatio  duas  partes  continet,  vocem  et  motum  •  et 

afFectus  omnes  languescant  certum  est,  nisi  orator  voce, 

vultu,  totius  prope  habitu  corporis  inardescat. 
Omnis  oratio  causae,  auditoribus,  pers9nae  ac  tempori  accom- 

modanda  est. 
In  stylo  necesse  est,  primuni  ut  purus ;  deinde  ornatus 

figurarum  varietate,  et  ad  rerum  dignitatem  accommo- 

datus ;  sed  ante  omnia  dilucidus ;  nam  orationis  virtus 

praBcipua  est  perspicuitas. 

SAMUEL  D.  BRADFORD. 


CHARACTER  OF  BENJAMIN  BILLINGS. 

DIED,  in  Roxbury,  on  Thursday,  August  20th,  1829,  Mr. 
Benjamin  Billings,  aged  sixty-four  years.  The  decease  of 
this  excellent  man  will  be  a  subject  of  deep  regret  to  a 
large  circle  of  relatives  and  friends,  and  to  all,  who  had 
the  privilege  of  his  acquaintance.  It  appears  to  us,  that, 
when  the  great  and  the  good  are  taken  away,  whose  lives 
have  been  distinguished  by  uncommon  acts  of  virtue  and 
kindness,  they  should  not  be  permitted  to  be  silently 
numbered  with  the  dead,  without  that  tribute  of  respect 
to  their  memory,  which  is  the  just  reward  of  excellence. 

The  subject  of  this  notice  was  a  person  of  extraordi- 
nary worth;  and  we  have  never  been  called  to  mourn 
the  death  of  any  one,  whose  life  was  passed  in  the  per- 
formance of  more  virtuous  and  disinterested  actions. 

His  youth  was  marked  by  respect  for  his  superiors  in 
age  and  experience  ;  by  uncommon  industry ;  and  moral 
rectitude ;  and  he  formed,  early  in  life,  habits  of  close 
attention  to  business,  which  continued,  without  relaxation, 
in  after  years,  and  contributed  so  largely  to  his  success. 
He  was  the  friend  of  religion,  and  of  good  order  in  society ; 
and  was  always  ready  to  contribute  liberally  in  aid  of 
measures,  which  should  benefit  the  interest  of  the  town  in 
which  he  resided.  When  any  work  of  utility  was  to  be 
accomplished,  his  name  was  among  the  very  first,  upon 
the  list  of  contributors  ;  although  his  acts  of  public  munifi- 
cence were  few,  compared  with  those  of  a  private  nature, 
which  he  was  in  the  habit  of  constantly  performing.  His 


CHARACTER  OF   BENJAMIN   BILLINGS.  53 

mode  of  life  was  quiet  and  unobtrusive.  He  avoided  dis- 
play and  ostentation,  and  sought  no  other  reward  than 
that  which  he  found  in  the  approbation  of  his  own  con- 
science. 

Of  his  domestic  qualities,  his  affectionate  devotion  to 
his  family  and  friends,  (scenes  which  least  attract  public 
attention  and  notoriety,)  we  cannot  speak  in  terms  of  too 
exalted  praise.  As  a  husband,  he  was  attentive  and  affec- 
tionate ;  as  a  father,  indulgent  and  kind ;  and,  as  a  mas- 
ter, humane  and  merciful.  He  seemed  particularly  formed 
for  domestic  enjoyments ;  and  it  was  in  the  circle  of  his 
family  and  friends  that  his  character  appeared  to  the 
greatest  advantage.  Indeed,  by  those,  who  were  inti- 
mately acquainted  with  Mr.  Billings,  scarcely  any  degree 
of  commendation  would  be  deemed  exaggeration. 

We  might  dwell  much  longer  upon  the  qualities  of  his 
heart,  and  speak  of  his  perfect  integrity,  his  love  of  truth, 
his  hospitality,  and  the  uncommon  candor  of  his  disposition. 
We  might  attempt  to  explain  that  power  and  influence 
about  his  manners  and  address,  by  which  he  was  enabled 
to  acquire  so  many  friends,  who  survive  deeply  to  lament 
his  loss,  and  to  whom  his  memory  will  be  forever  dear. 

There  are  many,  who  feel  that  his  death  has  dissolved 
some  of  the  strongest  ties,  which  human  nature  can  know  ; 
but  we  forbear.  The  heart  is  now  cold,  which  once  glowed 
with  friendship  and  philanthropy ;  and  the  ear,  which  was 
always  open  to  the  tale  of  distress,  hears  not  our  tribute 
of  applause ;  but  it  is  not  possible  that  the  impression, 
which  his  exemplary  life  and  character  have  left  upon  our 
memories,  can  be  easily  or  suddenly  effaced. 

No  man,  whom  we  have  ever  known,  had  more  sincere 
and  devoted  friends ;  and,  should  we  admit  that  he  had 
any  enemies,  it  would  only  prove  that  there  are  some 
hearts,  which  no  degree  of  kindness  can  soften. 

He  displayed  throughout  his  protracted  sickness  the 
most  unbounded  patience  and  fortitude,  and  in  the  last 


54  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

melancholy  scene,  the  resignation  which  he  discovered, 
evinced  the  efficacy  of  those  religious  principles,  by  which 
he  had  always  been  governed. 

It  may  be  deemed  superfluous,  to  add,  that,  by  the 
death  of  such  a  man,  his  afflicted  family,  his  relatives  and 
friends,  the  town  in  which  he  resided,  and  the  religious 
society  to  which  he  belonged,  have  sustained  an  irrepara- 
ble loss.  But  the  event  was  ordered  by  better  wisdom  than 
ours,  and  Christianity  would  teach  us  rather  to  be  grate- 
ful that  his  valuable  and  useful  life  was  spared  so  long, 
than  to  complain  that  it  was  not  continued  longer. 

"  Thy  fate,  then,  shall  we  ever  mourn, 
Placed,  as  thou  art,  in  happier  realms  above  1 
No  !  —  We  scarce  wish  thee  to  return  ; 
Sainted  and  blest,  if  virtue  Heaven  approve." 


CHARACTER  OF  PETER  REMSEN. 

DIED,  on  Friday,  August  26th,  1836,  at  his  country  seat 
at  Newtown,  Long  Island,  in  the  sixty-sixth  year  of  his 
age,  Peter  Remsen,  Esq.,  late  principal  of  the  house  of 
Peter  Remsen  &  Co.,  of  New  York. 

The  decease  of  such  an  eminent  merchant,  and  excel- 
lent man,  as  was  the  subject  of  this  notice,  cannot  fail  to 
be  a  source  of  deep  regret  to  a  large  circle  of  friends  in 
this  city  and  its  vicinity.  It  will  remind  some,  of  numer- 
ous favors  received ;  others,  of  the  ties  of  a  long  cherished 
friendship,  which  are  now  forever  broken ;  and  all,  who 
enjoyed  his  acquaintance,  of  the  loss  of  an  individual, 
who  was  highly  valued,  and  who  possessed  a  character  of 
very  uncommon  excellence  and  worth. 

The  situation,  which  he  filled  so  long,  as  the  head  of  a 
commercial  house,  so  extensively  known  and  so  highly 
esteemed,  both  at  home  and  abroad,  and  the  close  con- 
nexion he  sustained,  for  so  many  years,  with  all  the  most 
important  interests  of  the  city  of  New  York,  cannot  fail 
to  impart  an  interest  to  the  announcement  of  his  death, 
which  will  be  deeply  felt  on  both  sides  of  the  Atlantic. 

He  came  to  New  York  so  early  in  life,  and  while  that 
city  was  almost  in  a  state  of  infancy,  as  respects  its  com- 
mercial relations,  continued  there  so  long,  and  for  so  many 
years  filled  so  prominent  a  station,  that  the  history  of  his 
commencement,  his  growth,  and  his  prosperity,  seems 
almost  identified  with  that  of  the  city  itself.  And  it  may 
well  be  so ;  for  he  held,  for  many  years,  the  very  first  rank 
as  the  head  of  an  establishment,  second  to  none,  at  the 


56  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

time,  in  the  union ;  and  his  industry,  integrity,  and  unwa- 
vering regard  to  the  interests  of  his  correspondents,  were 
followed  by  the  usual  reward  of  a  rich  harvest  of  wealth, 
honor,  and  esteem.  He  took  a  deep  interest  in  the  rising 
greatness  of  that  city,  to  which  he  contributed  by  all  the 
means  in  his  power.  By  the  establishment  of  a  commer- 
cial house  conducted  on  principles  like  his  own,  he  offered 
powerful  inducements  to  the  merchants  of  other  coun- 
tries, to  give  the  market  of  New  York  a  preference  over 
all  others ;  and  no  plan  could  possibly  have  been  adopted, 
more  effectual  to  make  the  city  of  his  adoption,  what  it 
has  now  become,  the  greatest  commercial  emporium  upon 
the  American  continent. 

No  situation,  however  elevated,  could  make  him  forget 
the  claims  of  those,  who  had  done  him  a  kindness,  espec- 
ially when  he  was  commencing  life  with  but  slender  means ; 
and  he  used,  in  later  years,  to  dwell  with  much  pleasure, 
on  the  early  confidence  which  was  reposed  in  him  by 
some  friends  at  Boston,  and  especially  by  the  late  Francis 
C.  Lowell,  whose  sagacious  mind  made  an  early  discovery 
of  Mr.  Remsen's  worth  and  fidelity.  It  may  be  truly 
said,  that  this  kindness  extended  even  to  the  descendants 
of  these  early  patrons.  This  aid,  thus  promptly  applied, 
no  doubt  quickened  his  advancement ;  but,  at  the  same 
time,  it  is  believed  that  he  possessed  such  untiring  indus- 
try, unwavering  integrity,  and  close  attention  to  the 
interests  of  his  correspondents,  as  could  not  have  failed, 
in  time,  to  bring  him  into  the  foremost  rank,  even  under 
circumstances  less  auspicious.  His  death  will  be  especially 
regretted  by  many  of  the  young  and  middle-aged,  who  are 
now  filling  respectable  and  responsible  stations  in  life,  and 
who  feel  how  great  a  debt  of  gratitude  they  owe  to  his 
memory  ;  not  only  for  the  benefit  of  his  valued  counsel 
and  advice,  but  also  for  his  active  exertion  and  substan- 
tial favors  in  their  behalf;  and  probably  the  city  of  New 
York  has  never  been  called  to  mourn  the  loss  of  an  indi- 


CHARACTER  OF  PETER  REMSEN.  57 

vidual,  to  whom  so  many  of  the  junior  members  of  society 
are  indebted ;  for  he  had  a  most  rational  view  of  the 
worth  of  money,  and  considered  it  as  valuable  only  in 
proportion  as  it  confers  happiness  on  the  possessor,  and 
those  within  his  sphere  of  action. 

He  possessed,  too,  a  mind  of  great  discrimination,  and 
a  judgment  which  seldom  erred  in  its  decisions ;  and  he 
could  remain  cool  and  under  the  influence  of  his  reason, 
while  all  around  him  were  under  excitement,  and  the 
influence  of  temporary  feeling ;  and  this,  no  doubt,  was  one 
of  the  principal  causes  of  his  great  success.  His  prudence 
and  wisdom,  in  this  respect,  may  be  well  recommended  to 
persons  of  every  age ;  and  especially  at  the  present  crisis 
of  affairs  in  our  country.  He  was  very  kind  and  charitable 
to  the  poor,  and,  if  his  name  was  sometimes  found  wanting 
upon  the  numerous  lists,  which  are  so  constantly  presented 
to  us  at  the  present  time,  it  was  because  his  better  judg- 
ment told  him  that  some  are  of  a  nature,  and  for  a  pur- 
pose, from  which  the  virtue  is  greater  to  withold,  than  to 
afford  our  aid  and  support.  The  example  of  such  a  man 
should  not  be  slightly  passed  over,  t>r  soon  forgotten.  The 
lesson  it  teaches  of  the  value  of  industry,  integrity,  and  a 
faithful  discharge  of  the  duties  of  life,  may  be  perused 
with  benefit  by  all. 

Mr.  Remsen  was  never  married,  but  those  who  knew 
him  most  intimately,  felt  assured  that,  had  he  taken  upon 
himself  the  relations  incident  to  that  connexion,  they 
would  have  been  sustained  with  the  same  fidelity  and 
steadiness,  with  which  he  fulfilled  the  other  duties  of  life. 
He  has  left  but  few  near  relatives,  but  they  knew  how  to 
appreciate  his  numerous  virtues,  and  possessed  his  entire 
love,  confidence  and  esteem ;  and,  although  the  declining 
state  of  his  health,  for  several  years  past,  had  forbidden 
the  hope  of  his  long  continuance,  his  death  will  have 
inflicted  a  wound  upon  their  hearts,  which  time  only  can 
cicatrize  and  heal. 


LETTER  FROM   CARLSBAD. 


[We  hope  that  the  length  of  the  following  letter  will  not  deter  any  of  our  read- 
ers from  its  perusal,  for  it  will  be  found  to  be  of  a  very  interesting  character. 
The  description  of  the  venerable  Coke,  (to  whom,  we  believe,  the  writer  carried 
letters,  from  the  President,)  the  warm  friend  of  America,  who  made  the  motion,  in 
the  House  of  Commons,  that  "  the  thirteen  American  Colonies  shotild  be  free," 
and  carried  up  the  Address  to  the  Throne,  for  which  he  was  never  forgiven,  will 
be  read  with  great  pleasure.  The  writer  is  a  Boston  merchant,  of  high  standing 
and  intelligence,  and  every  way  worthy  of  the  liberal  courtesy  extended  to  him. 
We  hope  his  tour  may  prove  as  beneficial  to  his  health  as  it  must  gratifying  to  his 
feelings,  and,  in  a  short  time,  find  him  safely  restored  to  the  bosom  of  his  very 
numerous  friends  here,  who  are  awaiting  his  return  with  impatient  anxiety. 

Boston  Post.] 


KINGDOM  OF  BOHEMIA,  BATHS  OF  CARLSBAD, 
July  30,  1835. 

MY  DEAR  SIR  :  —  Soon  after  the  date  of  my  last  letter, 
I  proceeded,  by  invitation,  to  Holkham,  in  Norfolk,  the 
residence  of  the  celebrated  agriculturalist,  Mr.  Coke,  where 
I  was  detained,  by  his  kindness  and  attention,  nearly  a 
week ;  was  conducted,  by  him,  over  the  greater  part  of 
his  estate,  consisting  of  40,000  acres,  and  made  acquainted 
with  his  numerous  and  valuable  improvements  in  the  art 
of  agriculture.  He  also  introduced  me  to  several  of  his 
tenants,  of  which,  he  has  a  great  number,  and  some  of  whom 
rent  parcels  of  his  land,  amounting  from  1500  to  2000 
acres,  paying  for  the  same,  <£1800  to  <£2500  sterling,  per 
annum.  He  gives  no  leases  for  less  than  twenty  years, 
and  some  of  his  tenants  are  nearly  as  old  as  himself,  pos- 
sessing properties  from  £30,000  to  £50,000  sterling, 
keeping  a  great  number  of  horses,  cows,  and  large  flocks 


DESCRIPTION  OF  CARLSBAD.  59 

of  sheep  ;  and,  in  some  instances,  fine  hunting  horses,  and 
packs  of  hounds.  Mr.  Coke  retains  about  1700  acres  of 
his  land,  for  his  own  use  and  cultivation ;  has  400  head  of 
cattle,  nearly  all  of  the  North  Devon  breed ;  4000  sheep  ; 
a  vast  many  swine,  of  the  Neapolitan  breed,  and  a  great 
number  of  horses,  for  pleasure,  and,  also,  for  the  use  of 
the  farm.  His  park  is  seven  miles  in  circumference  ;  and 
about  40,000  head  of  game  are  killed  upon  his  whole 
estate,  per  annum.  These  consist  of  pheasants,  par- 
tridges, woodcocks,  snipes,  hares,  and  rabbits.  Mr.  Coke, 
himself,  is  a  great  sportsman ;  and,  although  now  eighty- 
two  years  old,  seldom  allows  a  fine  day  to  pass,  during  the 
sporting  season,  without  improving  it.  He  went  out  every 
fine  day,  during  my  visit,  and  never  missed  a  shot. 
His  chaplain,  Mr.  Collier,  records,  in  a  book,  the  game 
which  is  killed,  every  day,  by  Mr.  Coke  himself,  and  his 
guests,  describing  the  number  of  each  sort. 

Mr.  Coke  has  been  twice  married.  He  had  three  daugh- 
ters by  his  first  wife  —  Lady  Andover,  Lady  Anson,  and 
Mrs.  Spencer  Stanhope,  who  are  all  living ;  arid  the  two 
last  named  were  making  their  annual  visit,  at  Holkham, 
while  I  was  there.  I  have  never  seen  two  ladies,  who 
appeared  to  possess  more  excellent  qualities,  and  shall  ever 
feel  indebted  for  the  kindness  and  hospitality  with  which 
they  treated  me.  Mr.  Coke's  present  wife  wras  Lady  Ann 
Keppel,  daughter  of  the  Earl  of  Albemarle  ;  and  they 
were  married  on  the  22d  February,  1822.  She  was  then 
nineteen  years  old,  and  he  was  sixty-nine  years.  By  her, 
he  has  had  five  sons,  and  one  daughter,  all  now  living,  and 
a  more  beautiful  or  promising  family  of  children,  I  am 
quite  sure,  cannot  be  found  in  England.  The  eldest  son, 
Thomas,  goes  to  Eaton  next  year ;  and,  when  he  is  of  age, 
will,  no  doubt,  be  Earl  of  Leicester.  Mr.  Coke,  himself, 
has  received  the  offer  of  a  title  seven  times ;  but,  having 
incurred  the  displeasure  of  George  III.,  on  account  of  his 


60  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

active  measures,  in  concert  with  the  late  Mr.  Fox,  in  favor 
of  American  Independence,  he  would  never  accept,  after- 
wards, of  any  honor,  which  the  court  would  confer. 
Indeed,  he  had  risen,  already,  so  high,  that  no  title,  even 
that  of  king,  could  make  him  greater. 

I  regretted,  very  much,  being  deprived  of  the  society  of 
Lady  Anne  Coke,  during  my  visit ;  but  she  was  confined 
to  her  room,  having  given  birth  to  her  fifth  son,  about  ten 
days  previous  to  my  arrival.  Before  my  departure,  how- 
ever, she  requested  Mr.  Coke  to  have  me  conducted  to  her 
apartment ;  and,  there,  I  found  her  reclining  on  a  sofa. 
She  gave  me  a  most  kind  and  hearty  welcome  to  Hoik- 
ham  ;  regretted  her  indisposition  had  prevented  her 
receiving  me  sooner,  after  my  arrival ;  expressed  a  hope  I 
should  renew  my  visit,  at  a  future  time,  and,  on  taking 
leave,  presented  me  with  engravings  of  the  portraits  of 
herself,  and  her  four  eldest  boys.  I  had  heard  of  her 
great  personal  attractions  before,  but  they  much  exceeded 
my  anticipations,  and  her  whole  countenance  was  marked 
by  an  expression  of  benevolence  and  kindness,  which  I 
have  seldom,  if  ever,  seen  equalled.  Indeed,  I  was  ready 
to  believe  that  she  was,  what  Mr.  Coke  had  previously 
assured  me  she  was,  "a  perfect  model  of  a  wife  and 
mother."  She  mingles  very  little  with  the  gay  world; 
and  nearly  all  her  time  is  devoted  to  the  care  of  her 
family,  and  the  wants  of  her  numerous  tenants. 

Mr.  Coke  has  an  income  of  £70,000,  sterling,  per  annum, 
and  this  immense  wealth,  possessed  by  two  persons,  of  such 
unbounded  benevolence  and  generosity,  enables  them  to  do 
a  vast  deal  of  good.  Indeed,  their  tenants  almost  idolize 
them.  I  very  much  regret  that  our  country,  in  general,  is 
not  sufficiently  aware  of  what  she  owes  to  Mr.  Coke.  He 
has  been  the  oldest,  and  firmest,  and  most  active  friend 
America  ever  had,  in  England.  He  was  the  bosom  friend 
of  Mr.  Fox,  and  concerted,  with  him,  most  of  the  measures, 


DESCRIPTION  OF  CARLSBAD.  61 

in  the  British  Parliament,  which  paved  the  way  to  the 
acknowledgment  of  the  American  Independence.  In 
short,  he  made  the  motion,  in  the  House  of  Commons, 
that  "  the  thirteen  American  Colonies  should  be  free,"  and 
carried  up  the  Address  to  the  Throne ;  and,  for  doing 
which,  the  king  never  forgave  him.  He  was  in  thirteen 
consecutive  parliaments,  occupying  a  space  of  more  than 
fifty  years ;  and  concluded  his  parliamentary  life,  by  the 
passage  of  the  Reform  Bill,  which  passed  through  the 
House  of  Commons,  just  fifty  years  from  the  day  on 
which  Mr.  Coke  made  his  famous  motion  in  Parliament 
in  favor  of  reform.  Mr.  Coke  pointed  out  to  me,  in  his 
library,  an  engraving  of  the  Declaration  of  Independence, 
which,  he  remarked,  "  had  been  sent  to  him  by  order  of 
the  American  Congress,  and  which,"  he  said,  he  "  consid- 
ered the  greatest  honor  ever  conferred  upon  him."  I 
wish,  however,  that  Congress  would  take  some  measures 
which  should  cause  his  services  to  be  more  known,  and 
more  justly  appreciated  by  the  whole  American  nation ; 
for  Mr.  Coke,  like  Fox  or  Jefferson,  has  ever  been  the 
steady  and  consistent  friend  of  civil  and  religious  freedom 
throughout  the  world.  Allow  me,  my  dear  sir,  to  invite 
your  attention  to  this  subject,  and  something  valuable,  I 
think,  may  be  accomplished.  Mr.  Coke  takes  a  lively 
interest  in  all  the  concerns  of  America ;  is  a  great 
admirer  of  General  Jackson,  and  thinks  him  the  best 
President  we  have  had  since  the  time  of  Washington. 
He  told  me  that  Earl  Gray  remarked  to  him,  "  that  the 
late  Ministry  in  England,  having  read  many  of  the  violent 
newspaper  attacks  on  General  Jackson,  copied  into  the 
London  papers,  had  anticipated  difficulties  in  the  negotia- 
tion with  America,  during  the  Presidentship  of  the 
General ;  but  that,  instead  of  anything  unpleasant,  "  he 
had  never  conducted  a  correspondence,  with  any  country, 
so  agreeably,  as  with  America,  during  the  administration  of 


6£  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

President  Jackson."  Mr.  Coke  says,  there  is  no  man 
living  he  so  much  wishes  to  see ;  and  he  has  sent  him,  by 
me,  an  invitation,  to  visit  Holkham,  and  insists  upon  it,  that 
the  general  shall  visit  England,  after  his  present  term  of 
office  expires.  "  Tell  him,"  says  he,  "  it  will  do  him  much 
good,  and  that  he  is  not  too  old,  being  quite  a  boy,  com- 
pared to  me."  For  myself,  I  can  truly  say,  nothing  could 
give  me  more  pleasure ;  and  I  would  readily  consent  to 
cross  the  Atlantic,  the  eleventh  time,  to  accompany  so 
illustrious  a  character.  Indeed,  I  find  the  character  of  the 
President  justly  appreciated,  and  held  in  the  most  exalted 
estimation,  in  every  part  of  Europe,  which  I  have  visited. 
No  man,  since  Washington,  has  been  so  generally  known, 
or  so  much  admired.  The  fact  is,  that  the  people  of 
Europe,  with  a  sight  undimmed  by  that  film  of  prejudice, 
which  the  violence  of  party  zeal  has  drawn  over  the  eyes 
of  the  enemies  of  the  administration  in  America,  are  doing, 
now,  that  justice  to  the  great  merits  and  services  of 
General  Jackson,  which,  a  part  of  his  ungrateful  country- 
men,  and  which  posterity,  without  any  exception,  are 
sure  to  render,  after  a  time. 

I  left  London  for  Paris,  on  the  10th  of  February,  and, 
after  remaining  there  three  weeks,4  crossed  the  Alps,  over 
Mount  Cenis,  on  the  4th  of  March,  and  next  day  arrived 
at  Turin.  Fron  Turin,  I  went  to  Genoa,  Leghorn,  Pisa, 
Florence,  Rome,  Naples,  Bologna,  Venice,  and  Milan, 
remaining  in  each  principal  city  about  three  weeks ;  and, 
on  the  4th  of  July,  I  left  the  Lakes  of  Maggiore  and 
Como,  intending  to  pass  over  the  Rhsetian  Alps,  through 
the  Tyrol  to  Innsruch,  Vienna,  Prague,  Dresden,  Leipsic, 
and  Berlin,  to  Lubec,  on  the  Baltic  sea,  and  there  to  take 
the  steamboat  for  St.  Petersburg.  The  distance  is  about 
1200  miles,  and  I  have  already  accomplished  about  750 
miles  of  it,  having  arrived  here  a  few  days  ago  from 
Prague,  to  see  the  most  celebrated  baths  in  Europe,  and 


DESCRIPTION  OF  CARLSBAD.  63 

to  drink  the  waters  for  a  fortnight,  for  the  further  improve- 
ment of  my  health.  I  find  travelling  in  Germany  very 
agreeable.  The  posting  is  excellent ;  my  carriage  is  light ; 
I  have  fresh  horses  every  nine  miles,  and  accomplish  about 
nine  posts,  or  seventy-five  miles  a  day.  I  travel,  attended 
only  by  my  servant,  and  have  done  so  ever  since  I  left 
Paris  in  February.  It  is  sometimes  rather  solitary,  and  a 
little  expensive ;  but  I  have  a  perfect  command  over  my 
time  and  movements,  and  ngt  having  to  consult  with  any 
travelling  companion,  there  is  no  danger  of  any  collision 
or  quarrel,  as  to  whether  our  hermitage  shall  be  red  or 
white.  I  hope  to  reach  St.  Petersburg  by  the  6th  of 
September,  and  London  by  the  15th  of  October;  and 
where,  among  my  letters,  I  hope  to  find  one  from  you. 
I  wish  you  would  arrange  your  affairs,  so  as  to  visit  Eng- 
land, and  travel  with  me  in  that  country.  It  would  do 
your  health  much  good,  and  your  acquaintance  with  the 
French  language  would  make  you  feel  quite  at  home  in 
nearly  every  part  of  Europe.  I  think,  too,  it  would  cause 
you  to  estimate  our  excellent  and  free  institutions,  even 
more  highly  than  you  do  at  present.  I  wish  that  some  of 
those  persons  in  America,  who  complain  "  of  the  arbitrary 
measures  "  of  the  American  government,  would  cross  the 
Atlantic,  and  take  a  survey  of  some  of  the  governments 
of  Europe ;  that,  for  instance,  of  the  king  of  Sardinia, 
Carlo  Alberto,  who  is  probably  the  most  perfect  model  of 
a  tyrant,  which  Europe  contains.  He  maintains  an  im- 
mense army,  at  a  great  expense,  not  to  guard  his  kingdom 
against  foreign  invaders,  but  to  protect  his  own  person 
against  the  indignation  of  his  own  subjects.  In  Genoa, 
only,  he  has  14,000  soldiers,  and  eight  citadels  with  their 
guns  all  pointed  towards  the  city.  No  soldier  dares  speak 
to  a  citizen,  as  they  might  contrive  a  plot  together;  and 
every  person  is  watched,  and  even  in  his  own  house. 
This  government  fears  and  hates  foreigners  of  every  kind ; 


64  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

but  especially  those  who  are  the  subjects  of  free  states. 
It  was,  perhaps,  on  this  account  I  was  imprisoned  at  Alex- 
andria, (a  very  strongly  fortified  town,)  on  my  way  from 
Turin  to  Genoa.     I  had  been  in  the  town  only  four  hours, 
and  had  left  my  hotel  only  twenty  minutes  before,  when 
standing  for  a  moment  in  the  public  highway,  looking 
towards  the  citadel,  I  was  suddenly  arrested,  (as  also  my 
servant,)   by  two  soldiers  belonging  to  the  fortress,  and 
taken  before  the  governor  of  the  citadel,  on  a  false  charge 
of  having   taken   a  drawing   of  the    citadel — was   repri- 
manded, and  then  handed  over  by  him  to  the  governor 
of  the   town,   who    refused    to    hear   any    explanation — 
addressed  us  in  the  most  offensive  language,  and  then 
committed  us  to  another  guard  of  soldiers,  directing  them 
to  imprison  us  closely  in  one  of  the  barriers  of  the  town, 
and  to  wait  for  his  further  orders.     This  was  soon  done, 
and  we  were  lodged  in  a  place  nine  feet  long,  by  eight 
broad,  having  on  the  floor  a  bed  of  oak,  with  a  pillow  of 
the  same,  and  without  any  covering  at  that  cold  season  of 
the  year.     Our  persons  were  also  searched,  and  every- 
thing in  our  pockets  taken  away,  and   conveyed  to  the 
governor.     We  could  do  nothing.     Our  passports  were 
set  at  nought,  as  affording  us  no  protection.     After  our 
liberation,  (which  was  done  also  in  a  very  offensive  man- 
ner, and  without  any  apology  or  excuse,)  I  learned  that  a 
respectable    citizen   of   Leghorn,  had   a   year   ago   been 
imprisoned  eleven  months,  and  supplied  only  with  bread 
and  water  by  this  same  governor,  for  having  taken  two 
letters  of  a  stranger  as  he  was  leaving  Marseilles  in  the 
steamboat  for  Genoa,  and  which,  unknown  to  the  passen- 
ger, happened  to  be  addressed  to  some  persons  at  Genoa, 
who  were  concerned  in  what  is  called  "  the  rebellion  of 
1821."     This  man  was  wholly  innocent,  and  never  inter- 
fered with  politics,  and  was  liberated  after  a  confinement 
of  eleven  months,  only  by  the  interference  of  the  Grand 


DESCRIPTION  OF  CARLSBAD.  65 

Duke  of  Tuscany,  to.  whom  Leghorn  is  subject.  The  treat- 
ment I  received  was  shameful — I  was  perfectly  innocent — 
had  no  materials  about  me  for  taking  a  drawing,  and  had 
never  thought  of  attempting  one.  I  have  had  the  deposi- 
tion of  my  servant  taken  before  the  American  Consul  at 
Rome,  stating  the  facts  of  the  case — I  will  have  the  case 
laid  before  the  American  Government  for  the  vindication 
of  my  rights,  and  the  protection  of  other  Americans  who 
may  chance  to  travel  through  the  dominions  of  that  des- 
picable tyrant,  Carlo  Alberto,  king  of  Sardinia.  Such  is 
the  nature  of  all  governments  which  have  no  constitution, 
charter,  or  fixed  laws.  The  person  or  property  of  no  man 
is  safe  for  a  moment.  There  is  no  trial  by  jury  in  any  of 
these  arbitrary  governments.  The  military  are  the  judges, 
and  accusation  is  generally  equivalent  to  conviction  and 
death ;  or,  what  is  far  worse,  imprisonment  in  one  of  their 
charnel-houses.  During  my  stay  at  Naples,  the  squadron 
arrived  there  from  Gibraltar.  This  was  a  pleasing  occur- 
rence, and  I  had  many  very  agreeable  interviews  with 
the  officers;  particularly  with  Captain  Nicholson  of  the 
Delaware. 

I  cannot,  of  course,  attempt  to  give  you  any  account 
of  the  countries  or  things,  which  I  have  seen  during  my 
tour.  The  weather  has  been  uniformly  fine,  and  I  can 
accomplish  much  in  the  long  summer  days.  I  wonder  peo- 
ple will  visit  Italy,  or  any  other  country,  in  the  winter. 
One  should  see  Italy,  at  any  rate,  in  the  spring  or  summer. 
The  most  beautiful  spot  I  have  seen,  was  the  Lake  of 
Corno,  near  Milan  ;  and  if  heaven  be  a  place,  I  cannot 
help  thinking  it  is  certainly  something  like  the  banks  of 
this  lake.  But  all  such  places  must  be  seen  in  warm 
weather,  and  in  summer.  I  am  pleased  with  Carlsbad  also. 
It  is  a  pleasant  place  ;  and  about  4,000  persons  have 
already  arrived  here  this  year,  to  take  the  waters.  They 
have  produced  some  cures,  which  were  almost  miraculous. 


66  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

The  water  of  one  of  the  springs  is  hot  enough  to  make 
tea.  The  people  place  earthen  ware  in  the  water  to  have 
it  baked  hard.  The  Grand  Duke,  Michael,  of  Russia,  is 
here,  and  many  Russians,  Poles,  Germans  and  French.  I 
have  now  almost  travelled  beyond  the  range  of  the  English, 
and  there  are  only  two  or  three  families  here.  It  is  a 
general  remark,  that  the  English  are  omnipresent ;  but  I 
have  never  found  them  agreeable  people  on  the  continent. 
In  their  own  country,  they  are  hospitable,  and  have  much 
to  say ;  but,  on  the  continent,  they  are  silent  when  they 
meet  you ;  or,  if  they  speak,  it  is  with  the  manner  of  a 
bad  boy,  whom  his  parents  have  just  flogged,  and  who 
gives  an  answer,  sullenly,  to  some  question  asked  him. 

I  see  that  the  English  papers  say  that  you  are  going 
on  swimmingly  in  America.  I  also  see  that  the  United 
States  Bank,  just  as  its  charter  is  expiring,  has  increased 
its  loans  to  sixty  millions.  Beware.  We  may  have 
"  another  crisis ; "  and,  if  we  should,  I  predict  it  wil]  be 
more  severe,  and  ruin  more  people,  than  the  last.  There 
is  no  remark  older,  or  more  false,  than,  "  that  mankind 
grow  wiser  or  more  cautious  by  experience ; "  and  I  affirm, 
and  will  affirm,  that  a  man  who  has  once  committed  a  rash 
or  foolish  deed,  and  suffered  for  it,  is  more  likely  to  com- 
mit the  same  again,  than  another  person,  who  has  never 
done  the  foolish  act,  or  acquired  this  "  experience,"  as  it  is 
called.  But  I  must  conclude.  My  medical  attendant,  who 
has  the  care  of  my  eyes,  has  just  called,  and,  seeing  my 
long  letter,  has  blamed  me  for  writing  it. 

To  Hon.  DAVID  HENSHAW,  Boston. 


LETTER  FROM   MANCHESTER. 


MANCHESTER,  Dec.  24th,  1836. 

DEAR  SIR, — When  we  last  met,  you  were  pleased  to 
express  a  desire  that  I  should  address  you,  occasionally, 
from  this  side  of  the  water.  A  wish,  on  my  part,  to  prove 
that  I  duly  appreciate  your  politeness,  and  not  the  most 
distant  hope  that  I  can  communicate  any  thing  either  new 
or  interesting,  impels  me  to  comply  with  your  request. 
At  a  time  like  the  present,  when  Banks  and  Banking  are 
almost  the  only  topics  of  conversation,  I  might,  perhaps, 
be  thought  inexcusable  should  I  touch  upon  any  subject 
but  "  the  currency,"  which  occupies,  it  would  appear,  the 
minds  and  thoughts  of  all  on  both  sides  of  the  Atlantic. 

You  will  all  have  heard  of  the  rise  in  the  value  of  money 
here  to  5  1-2  per  cent ;  the  curtailment  of  credit,  and  the 
dulness  of  trade.  There  have  also  been  one  or  two  stop- 
pages of  what  are  called  "  the  Joint  Stock  Banks,"  and,  in 
one  instance,  one  of  these  institutions,  viz.,  the  Northern 
and  Central  Bank  of  England,  (the  head  of  which  is  located 
here,)  has  been  obliged  to  ask  aid  of  the  Bank  of  Eng- 
land. This  has  been  an  occasion  of  regret  to  the  friends 
of  joint  stock  companies,  but  of  great  triumph  to  the  bank 
itself.  This  institution,  viz.,  the  Northern  and.  Central, 
has  been  doing  an  immense  business,  and  had  forty  branches 
and  agencies.  They  also  issued  bank  notes  payable  on 
demand,  and,  in  this  way,  offended  the  Bank  of  England, 


68  WORKS   OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

which,  in  March  last,  offered  almost  any  accommodation, 
provided  the  Northern  and  Central  would  withdraw  its  own 
notes,  and  circulate  those  of  the  Bank  of  England.  This 
offer  was  declined,  and,  in  July  last,  a  committee  was 
raised  by  Parliament,  "to  inquire  into  the  state  of  the 
joint  stock  banks,  with  leave  to  send  for  witnesses  and 
papers." 

This  led  to  an  exposition  of  the  affairs  of  the  Northern  and 
Central  Bank,  by  which  it  was  discovered  that,  although  its 
paid  up  capital  was  only  £712,000,  it  had,  in  circulation  of 
notes,  £340,000  ;  owed  £379,000  to  its  depositors,  and  had 
allowed  those  with  whom  it  had  done  .business  to  over- 
draw their  accounts  to  the  extent  of  over  a  million  of 
pounds!  To  meet  these  liabilities,  all  its  ready  money 
means  amounted  to  only  £87,000 ;  and,  in  case  of  any 
panic,  it  depended  solely  upon  re-discounting  in  London 
the  notes  receivable,  which  it  had  received  of  its  custom- 
ers ;  and  it  had  formed  the  erroneous  opinion  that  its 
security  was  so  good  there  never  could  come  a  time  when, 
with  its  securities,  it  could  not  re-discount  in  London  its 
notes  or  bills  receivable  to  any,  the  most  unlimited  extent. 
In  this,  the  bank  was  deceived,  and  the  examination  of  its 
chief  manager,  Mr.  Cassels,  having  been  published  among 
the  parliamentary  papers,  the  public,  seeing  its  condition, 
began  to  doubt  its  credit ;  the  moneyed  interest  of  Lon- 
don would  not  discount  its  bills,  because  the  Bank  of 
England  would  not  take  those  bills  again  of  the  bill-brokers 
and  bankers ;  and,  in  this  emergency,  the  Northern  and 
Central  Bank  was  compelled  to  apply  to  the  Bank  of 
England,  which,  with  true  consistency,  said  to  the  direct- 
ors,— "We  know  well  enough  that  you  are  good,  and  safe, 
.and  solvent,  and,  although  we  would  not  take  your  bills 
when  offered  by  the  bill-brokers,  still  we  will  take  them  of 
you  direct  to  the  extent  of  £500,000  or  more,  if  you 
request,  on  the  condition  that  you  will  close  and  wind  up 


JOINT  STOCK  BANKS  IN  ENGLAND.  69 

your  branches,  all  or  nearly  all,  issue  no  more  notes  of 
yours,  but  circulate  ours." 

Humiliating  as  was  the  proposal,  the  Northern  and 
Central  could  do  no  better,  and  accepted  it,  and  the  tri- 
umph of  the  National  Bank  was  complete  !  So  much  for 
becoming  extended,  and  doing  too  much  business !  Few 
persons  appear  to  have  any  doubt,  that  the  raising  of  the 
whole  committee  itself  was  a  plan  concerted  on  the  part 
of  the  bank  and  a  few  of  its  friends,  to  put  down  the 
Northern  and  Central  Bank,  and  similar  institutions ;  and 
this  opinion  will  be  strengthened  in  the  mind  of  any  man, 
who  will  read  the  whole  examination  of  witnesses,  filling 
two  hundred  and  fifty  folio  pages  in  the  Parliamentary 
Reports.  You  will  perceive,  by  the  London  papers,  that, 
although  the  Bank  of  England  has  only  about  four  mil- 
lions of  bullion  in  lieu  of  eight,  which  is  the  lowest  sum  it 
ever  ought  to  have,  when  its  liabilities  are  thirty-two 
millions  of  pounds,  yet  it  continues  to  increase  its  secur- 
ities or  discounts,  and  appears  to  have  very  little  regard 
to  the  foreign  exchanges,  which  can  be  made  favorable 
only  by  a  curtailment  of  its  discounts.  The  only  way  to 
account  for  this,  is  the  opinion  that,  in  case  money  affairs 
become  worse,  and  the  bank  continues  to  lose  its  bullion, 
it  intends  to  apply  at  once  to  the  government  to  have  the 
restriction  repealed,  by  which  it  is  compelled  now  to 
redeem  its  notes  by  its  gold,  in  the  same  manner  in  which 
it  was  done  in  the  time  of  Mr.  Pitt.  What  a  scene  in 
England,  and  indeed  everywhere  else,  would  be  produced 
by  such  a  measure  as  this,  I  cannot  attempt  to  describe. 
So  much  for  raising  up  a  mammoth  institution,  like  the 
Bank  of  England,  in  copartnership  with  the  government ! 

There  can  be  no  doubt,  that  joint  stock  banks,  since 
their  commencement  in  1827,  have  been  multiplied  far 
beyond  the  wants  of  the  country ;  have  been,  in  some 
instances,  very  imprudently  conducted,  and  have  caused 


70  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

much  over-trading;  but  these  things  are  the  natural 
effects  of  the  want  of  proper  bounds  and  restrictions  in 
their  charters,  and  an  attempt  will  probably  be  made  by 
Parliament,  when  it  meets,  to  correct  the  errors  which 
former  legislators  have  committed. 

These  banks  must,  however,  be  all  eventually  safe ;  for 
every  person  who  holds  a  single  share  of  their  stock,  is 
liable  to  make  good  all  their  engagements  to  the  last 
pound  of  property  he  possesses.  The  Northern  and  Cen- 
tral Bank,  before  mentioned,  has  1264  shareholders.  The 
influence  of  these  banks  will  continue  to  increase,  prob- 
ably, and  they  are  likely  to  do  away,  in  a  great  measure, 
with  private  bankers,  and  eventually,  perhaps,  with  the 
bank  of  England  itself;  for  that  institution  has  always 
failed  to  exercise  that  boasted  salutary  influence  over  "  the 
currency,"  to  which  it  has  always  laid  claim.  England, 
like  the  United  States,  appears  destined  to  continue  sub- 
ject to  alarming  panics  and  violent  revulsions ;  and,  while 
they  continue,  we  hear  much  of  the  cruelty  of  banks  and 
bankers  ;  "  of  their  shameful  disregard  of  contracts  entered 
into  before  ; "  and  their  refusal  to  aid  those  of  their  friends 
who  are  "  hard-pressed,"  and  find  it  difficult  or  impossible 
to  meet  their  engagements;  whereas,  there  is  reason  to 
suspect,  often,  that  the  banks  and  bankers  themselves,  at 
such  times,  stand  quite  in  as  much  need  of  aid,  if  not 
more  in  need,  than  their  customers ;  and  every  panic 
which  occurs  should  teach  every  man  that  banks  and 
bankers  are  seldom  ready  to  accommodate  their  friends 
at  those  times  when  their  aid  is  most  required,  and  is 
asked  by  those  who  need  it  most.  It  would  appear  that 
banks  and  bankers  have  a  sort  of  prescriptive  right  to  do 
what  would  be  deemed  highly  improper  in  others,  and 
generally  they  do  it  with  impunity,  because  their  victims 
are  almost  always  indebted  to  them,  and,  on  this  account, 
dare  not  resist  oppression. 


JOINT  STOCK  BANKS  IN  ENGLAND.  71 

The  banks  in  America,  resemble,  in  this  respect,  what 
are  called  spiel-huyses,  in  Amsterdam,  which  are  crowded 
with  females  of  easy  virtue,  for  the  accommodation  of  the 
public.  The  proprietors  of  these  establishments  entice 
their  victims  into  their  dens  of  misery  and  vice  by  furnish- 
ing them,  in  the  first  place,  with  fine  clothes  on  their 
admission,  by  which  means  they  become  indebted  to  their 
keepers,  and,  after  this  is  accomplished,  they  find  no  diffi- 
culty in  practising  upon  them  every  kind  of  imposition, 
cruelty,  and  unfair  usage.  On  this  account,  the  moneyed 
institutions  of  the  United  States  should  be  subjected  to 
the  severest  discipline  on  the  part  of  the  Legislature  ; 
but  here,  again,  the  same  difficulty  occurs ;  and,  from  the 
lenient  manner  in  which  they  are  dealt  with,  when 
brought  before  their  judges,  there  is  great  reason  to  fear 
many  of  the  legislators  themselves  have  long  since  put  on 
the  livery  of  the  spiel-huys,  and  dare  not  do  their  duty 
like  freemen,  and  independent  members  of  the  Legisla- 
ture. In  this  way,  many  of  the  banks  in  the  United 
States  have  become  nuisances,  which  ought  to  be  abated, 
and  would  not  be  tolerated  in  any  other  portion  of  the 
globe ;  and  this  proves  that  a  country  may  have  free  and 
liberal  institutions,  and  make  their  own  laws,  and  yet,  for 
want  of  the  requisite  virtue,  and  moral  courage,  which 
should  always  guide  the  counsels  of  such  a  free  country, 
may  be  subject  to  a  great  many  abuses  of  power,  and 
subjected  to  numerous  inconveniences,  almost  as  great  as 
those  which  exist  under  a  despotic  government.  But  we 
all  admit  these  evils,  but  who  shall  point  out  the  remedy? 
Alas !  that  question  it  is  difficult  to  answer,  for  mankind 
do  not  grow  wise  by  experience. 

I  wish  it  were  in  my  power  to  report  a  more  favorable 
state  of  things  in  England ;  but  the  improvement  in  the 
moneyed  affairs  of  the  country,  which  seemed  near  at  hand 
a  few  days  since,  has  not  been  realized,  and  most  persons 


72  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

look  forward  to  the  future  with  considerable  apprehen- 
sion. The  prices  of  manufactured  goods,  however,  do  not 
fall,  and  holders  here,  like  the  same  class  in  America, 
appear  resolved  to  make  any  sacrifice  rather  than  to  sub- 
mit to  a  reduction  in  price. 

It  was  supposed  the  shipments  to  the  United  States 
would  almost  cease,  in  a  time  like  the  present,  especially 
as  this  is  declared  to  be  the  only  way  in  which  trade 
can  be  brought  back  to  its  usual  channels ;  the  interest  of 
money  reduced,  and  business  be  conducted  once  more 
with  any  kind  of  satisfaction.  Instead  of  this,  however, 
the  vessels  now  sailing  for  America,  have  full  freights, 
and  nearly  as  many  manufactures  as  last  year,  but  I 
should  fear  that,  while  this  continues,  the  embarrassments 
at  present  existing  in  America,  will  not  be  removed.  A 
rise  in  the  necessaries  of  life  has  taken  place  here,  very 
similar  to  what  has  occurred  in  the  United  States.  Wheat 
has  advanced  from  thirty-six  shillings  a  quarter,  (the  price 
in  July,  1835,)  to  sixty  shillings.  Potatoes,  which  usually 
bring  six  shillings  and  sixpence  a  load,  are  now  twelve  shil- 
lings and  sixpence.  Straw  has  advanced  from  three  and 
two  pence  to  seven  shillings  a  stone,  of  fourteen  pounds ; 
and  the  price  of  hay  has  doubled.  The  poor,  of  course,  feel 
this  advance  sensibly,  but  thus  far,  fortunately,  the  winter 
has  been  very  mild,  and  much  like  the  weather  which  is 
usual  in  the  spring ;  although  at  sea  there  have  been 
violent  gales,  and  many  vessels  wrecked.  The  last  three 
packets  have  made  their  passages  from  New  York,  each 
in  seventeen  days. 

Believe  me  to  remain,  dear  sir,  very  respectfully, 

Your  friend  and  obedient  servant. 


To  C.  GL  GREENE,  Esq. 

Editor  of  the  Boston  Morning  Post. 


THE  BOSTON  BANKS. 

THE  subject  of  currency  and  banking,  which  has  so 
much  engaged  the  public  attention  of  late,  has,  unluck- 
ily for  the  cause  of  truth,  been  so  mingled  with  the  party 
politics  of  the  day  as  to  induce  many  to  suppose  that  there 
is  some  natural  connexion  between  them.  No  two  sub- 
jects, however,  are  more  distinct  in  themselves,  and  all 
must  regret  the  unfortunate  coincidence,  by  which  a  con- 
nexion has  appeared  to  subsist  between  them.  It  is  no 
easy  thing  to  establish  the  principles  of  a  sound  and  safe 
currency  for  a  great  commercial  country  like  our  own, 
even  when  the  mind  comes  to  the  inquiry  unfettered  by 
prejudice  or  passion.  It  is  a  topic  on  which  the  wise  and 
good  of  both  parties  may  agree  to  differ ;  but,  when  we 
look  at  the  manner  in  which  our  banks  in  Boston,  or  (to 
speak  with  greater  caution)  some  of  our  banks  in  Boston, 
have  been  conducted  of  late  years,  especially  when  one 
calls  to  mind  the  facts  which  have  been  disclosed  during 
the  past  twelve  months,  all,  it  is  believed,  will  admit  that 
the  time  has  arrived  when  the  shareholders  in  those  insti- 
tutions should  call  the  managers  of  them  to  a  strict  and 
"  searching  "  examination. 

Some  years  since,  it  was  the  boast  of  our  city  that  a 
bank  failure  had  never  occurred  in  it,  and  that,  during 
the  commercial  panics,  in  which  the  banks  of  other  por- 
tions of  our  country,  (including  even  New  York  and  Phil- 
adelphia,) violating  every  principle  of  their  charters,  as 
well  as  every  obligation  of  honor  and  honesty,  had  sus- 
10 


74  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

pended  specie  payments,  the  banks  of  Boston  had  never 
swerved  from  the  path  of  duty.  Many  of  our  merchants 
must  remember  when,  some  twenty  or  thirty  years  since, 
it  was  announced,  in  State  street,  that  a  deficiency  had 
been  found  in  the  accounts  of  one  of  our  bank  officers. 
The  news  of  a  general  war  in  Europe  would  scarcely  pro- 
duce such  surprise  and  consternation  at  the  present  time. 
But  what  a  sad  reverse  have  we  witnessed  of  late  !  With- 
in the  past  twelve  months,  several  banks  in  our  city,  and 
its  immediate  vicinity,  have  actually  failed.  In  one  or 
more  instances,  the  managers,  after  purloining  a  part  of 
the  capital  of  the  institution,  absconded ;  and,  in  other 
instances,  the  shareholders  have  been  obliged  to  dismiss 
certain  leading  officers  for  gross  dereliction  of  duty.  In 
most  cases,  where  the  probe  has  been  made  to  enter,  it 
has  been  found  to  pierce  only  rottenness  and  decay;  and 
quite  sufficient  has  come  to  light  to  excite  our  fears  and 
alarms  that,  should  the  examination  be  persisted  hr  a 
further  amount  of  decay  and  rottenness  would  be  dis- 
closed. 

Much  has  been  said  and  written  upon  what  is  called 
"the  sub-treasury  system  of  Mr.  Van  Buren,"  and  upon 
the  great  risk  of  loss  the  public  would  incur,  by  entrust- 
ing large  sums  of  the  revenue  to  individuals  called  sub- 
treasury  agents,  instead  of  depositing  the  public  money  in 
our  banks,  governed  and  guarded,  as  they  are,  by  twelve 
or  more  directors  to  each  institution ;  and  looking  at  what 
has  occurred  in  Boston,  as  well  as  in  many  other  places, 
one  might  dwell  upon  the  fallacy  of  such  an  argument, 
were  this  the  place  for  such  a  discussion.  Enough,  how- 
ever, has  come  to  light  to  convince  any  prudent  and 
thinking  man  that  the  stocks  of  our  banking  compa- 
nies can  no  longer  be  considered  as  furnishing  safe  invest- 
ments for  money,  conducted  as  many  of  them  have  been 
of  late  years ;  and  that  a  thorough  reform  has  become  a 


BANKING  IN  BOSTON.  75 

matter  of  absolute  necessity.  And  when  I  consider  that 
the  banking  capital  of  this  city  is  over  twenty  millions  ol 
dollars,  and  that  the  funds  of  every  class  of  our  citizens, 
as  also  of  our  savings  banks,  and  many  other  corporations, 
are  invested  in  them  ;  not  to  mention  the  property  of  the 
widows  and  orphans,  whose  all,  in  many  instances,  depends 
upon  the  upright  management  of  those  institutions ;  I  am 
utterly  astonished  at  the  apathy  with  which  this  subject 
has  been  viewed,  and  at  the*  surprising  supineness  with 
which  the  stockholders  stand  still,  and  see  their  property 
mismanaged,  wasted,  or  purloined. 

That  these  institutions  ought,  long  since,  to  have  been 
subjected  to  the  most  severe  legislative  enactments,  and 
the  infraction  of  them  summarily  punished,  no  person  of 
just  views  can  doubt ;  but  experience  forbids  the  expec- 
tation that  any  thing  is  to  be  hoped  for  in  that  quarter  ; 
and,  therefore,  the  shareholders  should  take  the  business 
into  their  own  hands,  and  that  without  a  moment's  delay. 
Let  the  proprietors  of  each  and  every  bank  appoint  two  or 
more  persons  amongst  themselves,  whose  duty  it  shall  be 
to  visit,  twice  or  more  times  a  year,  the  several  banks ;  to 
call  for  officers,  clerks  and  papers,  and  to  examine  every 
evidence  of  property  the  banks  have.  Let  them  look 
sharply  to  the  accounts  of  the  presidents,  cashiers,  and 
directors  themselves ;  see  that  no  private  ledger  or  port- 
folio is  kept ;  that  no  due-bills  on  demand  are  set  down  as 
cash  actually  in  possession ;  that  no  heavy  loans  are  made 
to  favored  individuals,  or  to  persons  who  have  become  so 
needy  as  to  compel  them  to  pay  a  usurious  rate  of  inter- 
est for  the  accommodation.  Let  them  inquire  whether 
the  bank  which  they  are  visiting,  when  the  last  dividend 
was  declared,  had  actually  the  earnings  on  hand,  or  made 
it  out  of  profits  to  be  realized  at  a  future  day ;  or,  (what 
is  alleged  to  have  been  sometimes  done,)  borrowed  the 
money  at  twelve  per  cent,  per  annum,  to  make  a  divi- 


76  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

dend  to  the  stockholders  at  the  rate  of  six  per  cent.  Let 
them  ascertain  how  many  New  York,  and  Philadelphia, 
and  Baltimore  notes  the  bank  holds,  which  have  been  dis- 
counted at  an  usurious  rate  of  interest  for  the  accommo- 
dation of  traders  and  speculators  in  those  cities,  and  to 
enable  them  to  take  away  the  little  foreign  commerce 
which  remains  to  our  city,  while  the  paper  of  our  mer- 
chants and  of  our  own  young  men,  who  have  grown  up 
amongst  us,  settled  amongst  us,  and  who  have  to  pay  our 
taxes,  is  thrown  out,  because  a  just  regard  to  their  rights 
or  their  credit  would  not  allow  them  to  pay  over  six  per 
cent,  for  money.  Let  them  further  inquire  whether  the 
capital  of  the  bank  has  been  lent  to  its  depositors  and 
responsible  customers,  and  in  due  proportion  to  each,  and 
at  the  rate  of  interest  established  by  the  law  of  the  State ; 
or  whether  it  has  been  disposed  of  to  brokers,  or  needy 
applicants,  or  overgrown  corporations  in  large  sums  on 
pledges,  and  at  an  illegal  rate  of  interest.  Let  all  these 
points  be  ascertained,  and,  if  such  practices  have  or  do 
prevail,  let  the  unjust  stewards  who  are  guilty  of  them  be 
dismissed.  Let  each  bank  be  directed  by  its  stockholders 
to  publish  a  quarterly  account  of  its  situation,  that  all  the 
stockholders  may  have  access  to  it,  and  judge  for  them- 
selves. Let  these  measures  be  adopted,  and  we  shall  have 
no  more  bank  failures,  and  no  more  derelictions  of  duty 
among  the  officers  of  the  banks.  The  stocks  of  these  insti- 
tutions will  no  longer  be  selling  at  a  discount  of  ten  to 
twenty  per  cent. ;  the  property  of  our  widows  and  orphans 
will  become  safe  again  in  their  former  depositories,  and 
the  banks  of  Boston  will  once  more  deserve  and  acquire 
the  high  character  which  they  once  maintained.  CATO. 


LETTER   ON   CURRENCY. 

MANCHESTER,  Nov.  30,  1839. 

MY  DEAR  SIR  :  —  I  had  lost  this  pleasure,  by  the 
steamer,  since  which,  nothing  of  much  importance  has 
occurred  on  this  side  the  Atlantic.  The  pressure  upon 
the  money  market  is  as  great  as  ever ;  and  the  circula- 
tion is  said  to  be  as  low  as  in  1822.  In  the  issues  of  the 
Bank  of  England  alone,  there  is  a  reduction  of  three  mil- 
lions sterling,  and  the  deposits  were  never  so  small. 
These  circumstances,  occurring  at  the  same  time,  have 
almost  entirely  removed  all  apprehension  of  a  suspension 
of  specie  payments  on  the  part  of  the  bank,  or  of  the  issue 
of  one  pound  notes.  Commerce,  in  the  mean  time,  is 
greatly  depressed ;  people  in  trade  find  it  very  difficult  to 
meet  their  engagements,  and  there  is  a  general  complaint 
of  "bad  times."  Of  the  various  causes  which  have  pro- 
duced this  state  of  things,  the  heavy  import  of  corn,  the 
reckless  and  profligate  course  pursued  by  the  Bank  of 
Pennsylvania,  and  the  disasters  occasioned  by  it  in  America, 
the  destruction  of  so  much  British  property  in  China,  in 
the  shape  of  opium,  and  the  necessary  doubt  how  the 
trade  with  that  empire  is  to  be  conducted  in  future,  are 
the  principal ;  and  it  is  difficult,  at  this  moment,  to  predict 
what  the  result  may  be.  Our  dates,  from  New  York,  are 
to  the  8th  of  November,  and  are  looked  upon  as  more 
favorable  —  while  the  conduct  of  the  New  York  and  Bos- 
ton Banks,  in  maintaining  their  integrity,  is  the  theme  of 
universal  encomium.  At  the  same  time,  Mr.  Biddle,  and 


78  WORKS  OF  S.  D,  BRADFORD. 

his  bank,  are  only  mentioned  in  terms  of  execration,  and 
will  not  soon  be  forgotten.  We  shall,  very  soon,  expect  to 
hear  of  a  resumption,  by  the  solvent  banks  of  Philadel- 
phia, Baltimore,  and  Virginia  ;  for,  with  the  exchange  on 
London  and  Paris,  at  three  and  four  per  cent,  below  par, 
so  that  a  remittance  of  gold  or  silver  would  produce  a 
considerable  loss,  we  cannot  understand  how  solvent  insti- 
tutions can  remain  much  longer  in  their  present  degraded 
condition.  The  question  for  every  one,  now,  to  ask  him- 
self, is,  "  How  are  we  to  avoid,  in  future,  a  recurrence  of 
the  events  of  the  past  three  years,  and  save  ourselves 
from  becoming  a  nation  of  bankrupts  ?  "  for,  if  there  be  one 
plan  more  sure  and  efficacious  than  another,  for  convert- 
ing the  most  moral  and  virtuous  people  upon  earth  into  a 
nation  of  bankrupts,  swindlers,  and  rogues,  it  may  be  found 
in  just  such  a  system  of  banking,  and  paper  money  as 
exists  in  the  United  States  of  America,  at  the  present 
time.  Among  the  various  remedies  recommended,  that 
alone,  which  can  be  proposed  to  our  State  Legislatures, 
with  any  prospect  of  receiving  their  sanction,  is  the  pro- 
hibition of  bank  notes  under  the  denomination  of  twenty 
dollars ;  and  the  adoption  of  such  a  rule  would  give  us  a 
sound  and  healthy  circulation.  If  you  agree  with  me  in 
this  opinion,  as  I  hope  you  do,  permit  me  to  implore  you 
to  use  all  the  weight  of  your  influence  to  produce  this 
desirable  reform,  so  essential  to  the  best  interests  of  our 
country.  America,  without  the  adoption  of  this  plan,  can 
never  retain  among  her  population  such  an  amount  of  gold 
and  silver  as  is  absolutely  essential  to  the  stability  of  her 
moneyed  institutions,  or  to  the  solvency  and  honorable 
standing  of  her  merchants.  Gold  and  silver  will  not  long 
remain  in  a  country  having  a  paper  circulation  like  that 
of  our  own.  But  let  us  appeal  to  facts. 

In  Great  Britain,  prior  to  1822,  and  while  the  Bank  of 
England  remained,  like  the  banks  of  Philadelphia  now,  in 


ON  CURRENCY.  79 

a  state  of  suspense,  and  refused  to  redeem  her  paper,  the 

circulation  amounted  to  £64,000,000,  and  was  made   up 
thus : — 

Bank  of  England  Notes,  £30,000,000 

Country  Bank  Notes,  23,000,000 

Gold,  4,000,000 

Silver,  7,000,000 


Making  in  all  £64,000,000 

In  1822,  the  bank  was  compelled  by  Parliament,  amidst 
the  predictions  of  universal  ruin  on  the  part  of  the  Direc- 
tors and  the  Tories,  to  return  once  more  to  specie  pay- 
ments, and  to  issue  no  notes  under  £5,  and  now  let  us  see 
how  the  circulation  was  made  up  ten  years  after,  in  1832, 
as  given  in  Parliament  by  the  Duke  of  Wellington.  It 
was  made  up  thus : — 

Bank  of  England  Notes,  £19,900,000 

Country  Bank  Notes,  9,200,000 

Gold,  28,000,000 

Silver,  8,000,000 


£65,100,000 

Need  I  add  another  line  to  establish  the  position 
assumed  ? 

A  question  of  this  important  kind,  which  concerns  the 
honor  of  our  country  both  at  home  and  abroad,  should 
never  be  mixed  up  with  party  considerations.  Our 
future  character  as  a  nation,  our  rank  as  a  great  commer- 
cial people,  the  duty  wre  owe  ourselves,  and  the  good 
example  we  should  leave  our  children,  demand  an  imme- 
diate, a  radical,  and  a  thorough  reform  in  the  circulation 
of  the  United  States. 

In  my  last,  I  had  the  pleasure  of  mentioning  a  very 
pleasant  visit  I  had  received  from  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Van 
Buren  who  passed  three  days  with  myself  and  family  on 
their  way  from  the  Duke  of  Cleaveland's  to  Bristol,  to 
embark,  and  now  I  have  the  great  satisfaction  of  record- 


80  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

ing  a  most  agreeable  visit  just  concluded,  from  our  justly 
valued,  and  very  talented  minister,  Mr.  Stevenson,  and 
his  very  amiable  and  accomplished  lady. 

You  are  aware  how  many  difficult  questions  Mr. 
Stevenson  has  had  to  discuss  with  the  "  British  Cabinet, 
and  how  ably  and  triumphantly  he  has  advocated  the 
rights  of  his  country.  It  always  gratifies  me  to  hear  the 
way  in  which  the  English  speak  of  him.  He  possesses 
great  natural  eloquence,  improved  by  frequent  practice 
and  is  a  most  beautiful  and  animated  speaker.  It  is  said 
his  speeches  at  Glasgow,  and  before  the  British  Institution 
at  Birmingham,  have  seldom,  if  ever,  been  surpassed.  I  was 
pleased  to  hear  that  he  had  obtained  of  England  the 
indemnity  of  ^£30,000  for  the  slaves  which  were  unjusti- 
fiably set  at  liberty  from  a  ship,  which  was  wrecked  at  or 
near  Nassau.  If  America  has  been  fortunate  in  one  thing 
more  than  in  another  from  the  peace  of  1783,  it  has 
been  in  the  character  of  the  distinguished  persons  whom 
we  have  sent  abroad  to  represent  us  in  Europe;  and 
what  can  be  more  important  than  to  employ  the  most 
able  men,  since  foreigners  judge  us  so  much  by  our 
ministers?  s.  D.  B. 

To  the  Editor  of  the  Boston  Post. 


CAPTURES  IN   THE   AFRICAN   SEAS. 

• 
[From  the  Manchester  Guardian,  January  15,  1842.] 

UNITED     STATES.  — THE    RIGHT     OF     SEARCH. 

THE  packet-ship  New  York,  which  arrived  at  Liverpool  on 
Wednesday,  has  brought  American  papers  to  the  ££d  Tilt.,  but 
they  do  not  contain  any  news  of  importance.  The  American 
editors,  having  pretty  nearly  disposed  of  M'LEOD,  and  the  burn- 
ing of  the  Caroline,  are  now  busily  engaged  in  discussing  the 
merits  of  the  correspondence  between  the  English  government 
and  Mr.  STEVENSON,  the  late  American  envoy,  on  the  subject  of 
certain  alleged  outrages  upon  American  vessels  by  British  cruisers 
on  the  coast  of  Africa.  The  tone  of  these  discussions  is,  in  gen- 
eral, abundantly  angry  and  pugnacious ;  and  we  find,  that  parties 
connected  with  the  United  States,  are  not  free  from  apprehensions 
of  a  war  arising  out  of  the  misunderstanding  which  exists  on  this 
subject.  To  us,  however,  this  apprehension  seems  a  little  chi- 
merical ;  for  the  claims  set  up  by  the  American  envoy,  and  sup- 
ported in  the  American  papers,  are  so  utterly  unreasonable — we 
might,  indeed,  say  absurd  and  preposterous — that  any  govern- 
ment which  should  resort  to  a  war  for  the  purpose  of  enforcing 
them  would  expose  itself,  not  merely  to  the  grave  censures,  but 
almost  to  the  ridicule,  of  the  civilized  world.  Put  into  plains 
English,  and  divested  of  extraneous  topics,  with  which  it  is 
invested  in  the  course  of  the  discussion,  the  American  claim 
amounts  to  this — that  no  vessel  carrying  the  American  flag  shall 
be  visited  by  a  British  cruiser,  even  for  the  purpose  of  ascertain- 
ing whether  she  is,  or  is  not,  entitled  to  carry  that  flag.  It  is 
true,  that  the  Americans  do  not  put  their  claim  in  this  form, 
which  would  be  too  absurd  for  any  diplomatist  to  venture  upon ; 
11 


82  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

but  it  is  the  real  essence  of  what  Mr.  STEVENSON  says  upon  the 
subject ;  and  when  that  is  pointed  out  by  Lord  PALMERSTON  and 
Lord  ABERDEEN,  instead  of  showing  that  those  noble  lords  have 
misunderstood  his  allegations,  and  that  he  really  means  some- 
thing else,  the  American  envoy  shelters  himself  under  vague 
generalities,  which  may  mean  any  thing  or  nothing  at  all. 

One  fallacy  under  which  Mr.  STEVENSON  seeks  to  cloak  his 
meaning,  or  his  want  of  meaning,  is  an  allegation,  which  he 
repeats  many  times,  and  in  support  of  which  he  quotes  various 
authorities  on  international  law, — to  the  effect  that  the  right  of 
search  is  a  belligerent  right ;  and  that,  as  Great  Britain  is  not  at 
war,  she  has  no  right  to  ascertain  the  nationality  of  vessels  bear- 
ing the  American  flag  on  the  African  coast.  Mr.  STEVENSON  had 
no  need  to  quote  VATTEL,  or  Lord  STOWELL,  to  prove  his  allega- 
tion ;  the  right  of  search  is  belligerent ;  but  then,  what  is  a  bellige- 
rent right  ?  Why,  in  this  case,  nothing  more  than  the  right  of 
one  vessel  to  make  war  upon,  and  to  capture  other  vessels.  A 
national  ship,  of  a  country  at  war,  that  meets  with  an  enemy's 
vessel, — any  ship  that  meets  with  a  pirate,  the  common  enemy  of 
all  mankind, — any  revenue  cruiser  that  finds  a  smuggler, — and 
also  any  English,  French,  Spanish,  or  Portuguese  ship  of  war, 
that  meets  with  a  slaver  of  any  one  of  those  nations, — has  the 
undoubted  right  to  attack  it  with  fire  and  sword,  to  capture,  and, 
if  resisted  to  a  sufficient  extent,  to  destroy  it,  with  its  crew. 
These  are  all  and  equally  belligerent  rights ;  and  they  all  and 
equally  give  the  right  of  visitation  of  vessels  under  circumstances 
which  induce  a  fair  suspicion  that  they  come  within  the  category 
of  enemies.  The  Americans,  however,  set  up  a  claim  to  have  all 
American  vessels  exempted  from  visitation  by  the  cruisers  engaged 
in  putting  down  the  slave  trade  ;  and  they  require  that  the  simple 
display  of  an  American  ensign  shall  be  taken  as  proof  of  national 
character.  In  other  words,  they  require  that  all  British,  French, 
Spanish,  or  Portuguese  slavers  shall  be  enabled  to  shelter  them- 
selves, and  carry  on  their  horrid  trade  with  impunity,  by  the  very 
cheap  expedient  of  carrying  a  piece  of  bunting,  with  certain  stripes 
and  stars  upon  it.  But  upon  what  definite  grounds  do  they  rest 
this  extraordinary  claim  ?  We  have  searched  in  vain  in  Mr. 
Stevenson's  notes,  and  in  the  leading  articles  of  American  news- 


CAPTURES  IN  THE  AFRICAN  SEAS.  88 

papers,  for  any  intelligible  statement  on  this  point.  If  the  claim 
should  be  conceded  by  the  English  government  (of  which,  by  the 
way,  there  is  very  little  danger,)  we  presume  the  next  demand 
would  be,  that  any  suspicious-looking,  lugger-rigged  vessel  that 
might  be  found  lurking  about  the  English  or  Irish  coast,  should 
be  exempted,  not  merely  from  capture,  but  from  visit  and  examina- 
tion, by  hoisting  an  American  flag.  The  one  demand  is  just  as 
reasonable,  just  as  consistent  with  common  sense  and  interna- 
tional law,  as  the  other,  and  just  as  likely  to  be  conceded  by  the 
English  government. 

We  confess  that  we  have  no  fear  of  war  on  any  such  grounds. 
American  envoys  (especially  when  desirous  of  giving  trouble  to 
the  government  that  has  recalled  them)  may  write  waspish  and 
unreasonable  notes,  and  American  editors  may  indite  blustering 
articles,  on  such  subjects  ;  but  the  American  government  is  not 
so  destitute  of  common  understanding,  as  to  plunge  their  country 
into  a  war  on  any  such  ridiculous  grounds. 


[From  the  Manchester  Guardian,  January  22,  1842.] 
ENGLAND  AND  THE  UNITED    STATES  —  THE  RIGHT  OF   SEARCH. 

WE  have  received,  from  a  highly  respectable  American  gentle- 
man resident  in  this  town,  the  following  letter  in  reference  to  an 
article  on  this  subject,  which  recently  appeared  in  the  Guardian, 
with  a  request  that  we  will  give  it  insertion.  To  this  request,  we 
most  readily  accede  ;  and,  though  the  great  length  of  the  letter 
makes  such  a  course  somewhat  inconvenient,  we  place  it  in  the 
most  prominent  situation  we  can  command  for  it ;  at  the  same  time 
requesting  that  those  of  our  readers  who  feel  an  interest  in  ques- 
tions of  international  law  will  read  it,  not  only  with  care  and  atten- 
tion, but  with  that  feeling  of  indulgence  which  ought  always  to 
be  extended  to  a  gentleman  who  comes  forward  in  a  foreign  land 
to  maintain  his  views  of  the  interests  and  the  honor  of  his  country. 
In  the  present  state  of  the  relations  between  England  and  the 
United  States,  it  is  important  that  Englishmen  should  make  them- 
selves acquainted,  not  only  with  the  real  merits  of  the  great  ques- 


84  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

tions  that  divide  the  two  countries,  but  also  with  the  interests  and 
even  the  prejudices  which  prevent  others  from  taking  a  just  and 
dispassionate  view  of  them.  Inveterate  prej  udices  are  best  worn 
away,  as  hard  substances  are  polished,  by  rubbing  them  together  ; 
and  we  can  conceive  no  practice  more  likely  to  abate  certain 
unfriendly  feelings  prevailing  on  both  sides  of  the  Atlantic,  than 
the  practice  of  Englishmen  in  America,  and  Americans  in  Eng- 
land, stepping  forward,  as  our  correspondent  has  done,  and  fairly 
and  fully  advocating  the  opinions  generally  entertained  by  their 
fellow-countrymen. 

With  this  preface,  we  give  the  letter  above  referred  to,  hoping 
that  our  readers  will  not  be  deterred  by  its  length  from  giving  it  a 
perusal ;  and  we  subjoin  some  observations  to  which  we  beg  also 
to  direct  their  attention. 

To  the  Editor  of  the  Manchester  Guardian  : 

SIR, — I  have  read  with  attention  some  editorial  remarks 
contained  in  your  paper  of  the  15th  instant,  under  the 
head  of  "  The  Right  of  Search/'  relating  to  the  recent 
correspondence  between  the  American  ambassador  in 
London,  and  her  majesty's  late  and  present  secretaries  of 
state.  The  conclusions  at  which  you  appear  to  have 
arrived,  seem  to  me  so  unsupported  by  the  terms  of  that 
correspondence  that  I  find  it  difficult  to  believe  that  you  can 
have  read  it  with  your  usual  attention  and  care.  The 
charge  against  Mr.  Stevenson,  the  late  American  ambas- 
sador, that  "  he  has  sheltered  himself  under  vague  gen- 
eralities," and  that  it  would  appear,  by  the  tenor  of  his 
letters, — "that  the  Americans  require  that  all  British, 
French,  Spanish  and  Portuguese  slaves,  shall  be  enabled 
to  shelter  themselves  and  carry  on  their  horrid  trade  with 
impunity,  by  the  cheap  expedient  of  carrying  a  piece  of 
bunting  with  certain  stripes  and  stars  upon  it,"  has  no 
foundation,  so  far  as  I  can  find,  in  the  letters  of  the  above- 
named  individual.  On  the  contrary,  the  subjects  in  dis- 
pute between  the  two  countries  appear  to  me  to  have 


CAPTURES  IN  THE  AFRICAN  SEAS.  85 

been  treated,  on  the  part  of  Mr.  Stevenson,  with  courtesy, 
dignity,  and  consummate  ability  ;  nor  have  I  been  able  to 
find,  in  the  replies  of  the  British  secretaries,  any  satisfac- 
tory answer  to  the  powerful  arguments  advanced.  On 
reference  to  the  correspondence,  I  find  no  less  than  three 
letters  from  Lord  Palmerston,  in  which  he  expressly  dis- 
claims all  right,  on  the  part  of  Great  Britain,  "  to  search 
and  detain  vessels,  which  are  the  property  of  citizens  of 
the  United  States,  when  navigating  the  high  seas."  In 
his  letter,  dated  5th  August,  1841,  to  Mr.  Stevenson,  who 
had  called  upon  her  majesty's  government  for  reparation 
for  losses  sustained  by  a  recent  detention,  by  one  of  her 
majesty's  cruisers,  of  an  American  vessel  called  the  Doug- 
las, his  lordship  does  not  undertake  to  justify  the  same  by 
reason  of  any  right  of  search,  or  detention,  possessed  by 
Great  Britain,  but  assigns,  as  a  reason  and  excuse  for  the 
proceeding,  an  agreement  alleged  to  have  been  entered 
into  by  the  American  commander,  Paine,  of  the  American 
navy,  with  the  commander  of  her  majesty's  cruisers  in  the 
African  seas,  according  to  each  other,  for  a  season,  a 
mutual  right  of  search ;  and  his  reply  to  Mr.  Stevenson  is 
in  the  following  words :  "  Although  it  was  indisputable 
that  British  cruisers  have  no  right  as  such  to  search  and 
detain  vessels  which  are  the  property  of  citizens  of  the 
United  States,  even  though  such  vessels  may  be  engaged 
in  the  slave  trade,  yet,  in  these  cases,  these  vessels  acted 
in  pursuance  of  a  special  engagement  with  a  naval  officer 
of  the  United  States."  Again,  on  the  27th  August,  Lord 
Palmerston  informs  Mr.  Stevenson,  "  that  the  government 
had  written  to  the  commissioners  of  the  British  court,  at 
Sierra  Leone,  that  British  ships  of  war  were  not  author- 
ized to  visit  and  search  American  vessels  on  the  high  seas." 
And,  in  another  letter  of  his  lordship's,  of  the  same  date, 
he  declares  :  "  Such  things,  however,  will  not  happen  again, 
because  orders  have  been  given,  which  will  prevent  their 


86  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

recurrence  ;"  and  he  adds,  "  her  majesty's  government  do 
not  pretend  that  her  majesty's  naval  officers  have  any 
right  to  search  American  merchantmen,  met  with,  in  time 
of  peace,  at  sea."  Can  any  language  be  more  decisive  or 
unequivocal  than  this  ?  But  what  will  your  intelligent 
readers  say,  when  informed  that,  before  concluding  this 
same  letter,  after  making,  with  more  flippancy  than  good 
taste,  some  very  indiscreet  and  uncourteous  remarks  upon 
the  American  flag,  his  lordship  proceeds  to  cancel  every 
thing  which  he  had  written  before,  and  puts  in  the  claim 
of  Great  Britain  to  the  odious  right  of  search,  in  a  form 
never  before  avowed,  and  to  an  extent  never  before 
asserted  ?  In  this  communication,  with  a  sophistry  which, 
in  the  history  of  special  -  pleading,  was  never  surpassed ; 
and  with  a  chicanery  almost  without  parallel  in  the  rec- 
ords of  diplomacy,  he  undertakes  to  vindicate  the  claim 
of  Great  Britain,  by  attempting  to  prove  a  difference 
between  the  right  of  search  and  the  act  of  arresting,  vis- 
iting, and  detaining  a  vessel  upon  the  high  seas,  examin- 
ing her  papers,  and  ascertaining  (to  use  the  words  of  the 
secretary)  "  that  she  is  a  vessel  of  the  United  States,  and 
navigated  according  to  law."  It  is  true,  as  remarked  by 
Mr.  Stevenson,  that  his  lordship  has  omitted  to  mention 
by  what  law  he  required  these  American  vessels  to  be 
navigated.  To  this  communication,  the  American  ambas- 
sador replies,  under  date  of  the  tenth  September,  and 
most  triumphantly  refutes  the  sophistical  reasoning  of  the 
British  secretary.  He  proves,  beyond  all  doubt,  that  the 
claim  asserted  by  Great  Britain  is,  undisguisedly,  the  same 
right  of  search,  and  the  same  attempt  to  exercise  a  juris- 
diction upon  the  high  seas,  against  which  America  has 
always  contended ;  and  to  which  she  will  never  submit 
under  any  circumstances  whatever.  This  is  the  letter  in 
which  Mr.  Stevenson,  with  so  much  force,  calls  the  atten- 
tion of  Lord  Palrnerston  to  a  decision  of  the  late  Sir  Wil- 


CAPTURES  IN  THE  AFRICAN  SEAS.  87 

liam  Scott,  in  1817,  relating  to  a  French  slaver,  which  had 
been  captured  by  an  English  cruiser,  and  condemned^  as 
Sir  William  contended,  against  the  law  of  nations.  The 
words  of  that  eminent  and  learned  man  are  so  remarkable, 
and  apply  with  so  much  force  to  the  dispute  existing  at 
present  between  England  and  America,  I  cannot  forbear 
their  quotation,  "  that  no  authority  could  be  found,  which 
gave  any  right  of  visitation  or  interruption  over  the  ves- 
sels or  navigation  of  other  states  on  the  high  seas,  except 
that  which  the  right  of  war  gives  to  belligerents  against 
neutrals ;  and  that  Great  Britain  had  no  right  to  force  her 
way  to  the  liberation  of  Africa,  by  trampling  upon  the 
rights  or  independence  of  other  nations,  for  any  good, 
however  eminent." 

From  the  above  premises,  and  the  admissions  and  dec- 
larations of  Lord  Palmerston  himself,  the  following  con- 
clusion is  unavoidable,  namely,  that  whereas,  in  his  ear- 
lier communications,  Lord  Palmerston  unequivocally  dis- 
claimed "  a  right  to  search  American  vessels  on  the  high 
seas  in  time  of  peace,"  some  circumstance  must  have 
occurred  between  the  fifth  and  twenty-seventh  of  August, 
of  no  ordinary  importance,  to  have  induced  the  British 
cabinet  to  assume  this  new  and  unexpected  position,  and 
to  assert  the  above-named  odious  claim  in  the  manner 
already  described.  In  seeking  for  the  cause  of  this  sud- 
den change,  the  mind  is  carried  at  once  to  the  treaty 
recently  proclaimed  as  having  been  made  by  Great  Brit- 
ain with  the  other  four  great  powers  of  Europe,  and  which 
Lord  Palmerston,  with  so  much  complacency,  has  named 
"  The  Christian  League."  It  is  true  that  the  treaty  was 
openly  proclaimed  and  published  only  a  few  weeks  since  ; 
and  all  must  remember  with  what  a  flourish  of  trumpets  it 
was  ushered  in  on  the  part  of  the  British  press,  on  account 
of  the  astounding  effect  it  would  have  upon  the  United 
States ;  (no  doubt  in  enabling  Great  Britain,  after  a  trial 


88  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

of  more  than  half  a  century,  to  establish  the  right  of 
search ;)  but  no  one  has  informed  us  at  what  precise  time 
its  principal  articles  were  agreed  upon.  Lord  Palmerston, 
under  date  of  27th  August,  informs  Mr.  Stevenson,  that 
66  the  treaty  will  be  a  dead  letter,"  unless  America  will 
become  a  party  to  it,  which  proves  his  anxiety  upon  the 
subject ;  nor  is  it  any  violent  presumption,  that  Great 
Britain,  to  carry  her  point,  may  have  engaged  with  France, 
for  instance,  to  require  of  the  United  States  to  accede  to 
the  terms  of  the  treaty ;  and,  in  case  of  refusal,  to  force  a 
compliance  by  a  violation  of  her  rights  upon  the  highway 
of  nations.  Agreements  of  this  character,  in  the  form  of 
what  are  called  secret  articles,  are  events  of  no  uncom- 
mon occurrence  between  the  crowned  heads  of  Europe. 
France  is  understood  to  have  been  the  power  which  hesi- 
tated the  longest ;  and,  looking  at  the  character  of  that 
proud  monarchy,  and  the  well-known  hatred  and  jealousy 
entertained  by  the  people  of  that  country  towards  Great 
Britain,  it  is  no  improbable  supposition  that  the  motive 
for  her  present  compliance  with  the  earnest  solicitations 
of  Great  Britain  may  have  been  the  hope  of  producing  a 
war  between  her  ancient  rival  and  the  United  States.  It 
would  not  be  the  first  time  that  a  British  Secretary  of 
State  has  been  made  the  dupe  of  the  crafty  diplomacy  of 
France ;  nor  could  the  government  of  France  have  taken 
a  safer  position ;  for,  if  Great  Britain  shall  determine  to 
exercise  the  right  asserted,  war  is  inevitable. 

And  now,  sir,  since  you  have  been  pleased  to  pro- 
nounce the  claims  of  America  so  "  unreasonable,"  "  absurd," 
and  "  preposterous,"  permit  me  to  ask  a  few  plain  and 
simple  questions.  If  the  United  States  had  placed  them- 
selves in  a  false  position,  or  asserted  unjust  or  unreason- 
able claims,  why  did  Lord  Palmerston,  when  called  upon 
by  the  American  government  for  reparation  for  losses 
sustained  by  the  detention  of  certain  American  vessels 


CAPTURES  IN  THE  AFRICAN  SEAS.  89 

upon  the  African  seas,  justify  the  same  by  reason  of  the 
agreement   between   the   English    and    American   naval 
commanders  already  mentioned  ?     Why  did  he  not  say 
at  once;,  "  We  had  a  right  to  arrest  and  detain  these  ves- 
sels, and  shall  do  so  again  under  similar  circumstances  ?  " 
What  emergency  has  arisen  to  authorize  Great  Britain  to 
interpolate  the  law  of  nations,  or  to   render  the  surveil- 
lance of  British  cruisers  necessary  or  just  over  the  ship- 
ping  of   the    United    States  ?     Twenty-six   years    have 
elapsed  since  the  peace  and  treaty  of  Ghent  wrere  con- 
cluded, during  which  time  the  slave-trade  has  been  car- 
ried on,  as  Mr.  Buxton  and  others  assure  us,  to  the  great- 
est  extent  upon  the  African  and  other   seas;  and  yet. 
Great  Britain  has  never  ventured,  until  now.  to  assert 
the  right  of  violating  the  American  flag.     Is  America, 
with  a  population  of  seventeen  millions,  and   a  fleet  tre- 
ble in  power  to  that  she  possessed  in  1812,  less  able  now 
to  execute  her  laws  for  the  suppression  of  the  slave-trade 
than  she  has  been  ?     Is  there  a  single  inhabitant  of  Great 
Britain  mad  enough  to  suppose,  that  America  will  permit 
any  nation  upon  the   earth  to  dictate  to   her  what  she 
ought  to  do  ?     Have  not  only  the  laws  of  nations,  but  of 
England  too,  as  expounded  by  Sir  William  Scott,  become 
changed,  because  what  are  called  the  five  great  powers  of 
Europe  (three  of  which  can  scarcely  be  called  commer- 
cial nations)   have  ordered  to  be  put  the  signatures  of 
their   respective  ambassadors  to  a  piece  of  parchment, 
called,  by   Lord   Palmerston,  "  The    Christian    League  ?  " 
And  last,  but  not  least,  if  Great  Britain  or  her  allies  have 
a  right  to  exercise  the  power  claimed  over  American  ves- 
sels, why  has  Great  Britain,  as  stated  by  Lord  Aberdeen 
in  his  letter  of  the    13th  October  last,   deemed  it  neces- 
sary to  request  the  permission  of  America,  or,   in   other 
words,  to  solicit  her  to  become  a  party  to  the   treaty 
which  should  contain  that  permission  ? 

12 


90  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

The  truth  is,  the  position  now  maintained  by  America 
is  not  "  any  extraordinary  claim,"  as  has  been  asserted, 
but  is  as  old  as  the  American  government.  Its  infringe- 
ment by  Great  Britain  was  one  of  the  principal  causes 
of  the  war  of  1812.  As  long  ago  as  1812,  Mr.  Madison,  in 
his  message  to  the  American  Congress,  informs  them, 
"  that  the  British  cruisers  have  been  in  the  continued 
practice  of  violating  the  American  flag  on  the  great  high- 
way of  nations,  and  of  seizing  and  carrying  off  persons 
sailing  under  it,  not  in  the  exercise  of  a  belligerent  right, 
founded  on  the  law  of  nations,  against  an  enemy,  but  of 
a  municipal  prerogative  over  British  subjects." — "  British 
jurisdiction,"  says  he,  "  is  thus  extended  to  neutral  vessels 
in  a  situation  where  no  laws  can  operate  but  the  law  of 
nations,  and  the  laws  of  the  country  to  which  the  vessels 
belong ;  and  the  practice  is  so  far  from  affecting  British 
subjects  alone,  that,  under  the  pretext  of  searching  for 
these,  thousands  of  American  citizens,  under  the  safe- 
guard of  national  law,  and  of  their  national  flag,  have 
been  torn  from  their  country  and  everything  dear  to  them, 
have  been  dragged  on  board  of  ships  of  war  of  a  foreign 
nation,  and  exposed  under  the  severities  of  their  disci- 
pline, to  be  exiled  to  the  most  distant  and  deadly  climes, 
to  risk  their  lives  in  the  battle  of  their  oppressors,  and 
to  be  the  melancholy  instruments  of  taking  away  those 
of  their  own  brethren." 

Thus  wrote  President  Madison,  in  his  address  to  the 
American  Congress,  in  June,  1812 ;  and  who,  after  its 
perusal,  can  feel  any  surprise  that  America  should  look 
with  suspicion,  in  1842,  upon  propositions  touching  this 
same  right  of  search,  and  coming  from  the  same  British 
government,  whose  unjust  and  violent  proceedings  are 
detailed  above  in  the  year  1812?  In  the  editorial 
remarks  contained  in  the  Guardian  of  the  5th  instant, 
you  impute  the  feeling  of  disaffection  between  England 


CAPTURES  IN  THE  AFRICAN  SEAS.  91 

and  America  to  the  contiguity  of  the  possessions  of  the 
two  countries,  and  to  the  large  military  force  on  foot  in 
Canada ;  and  you  speak  of  "  the  remarkable  patience " 
of  the  Americans,  under  what  you  appear  to  consider 
such  a  heavy  grievance.  I  am  quite  at  a  loss,  however, 
to  understand  what  proof  you  have  that  America  has 
ever  considered  the  standing  army  in  Canada  as  a  griev- 
ance, or  a  subject  of  which  she  had  any  right  to  com- 
plain. I  am  not  aware  that  any  feeling  of  that  charac- 
ter has  ever  manifested  itself  on  the  part  of  the  American 
government  or  people ;  nor  have  they  ever  ventured  to 
interfere  as  to  the  manner  in  which  Great  Britain  should 
govern  her  foreign  possessions  in  North  America,  or  any 
other  part  of  the  globe.  On  the  contrary,  most  well- 
informed  Americans,  I  believe,  have,  for  a  long  time, 
looked  upon  the  Canadas  as  rather  an  expense  and 
source  of  weakness  to  Great  Britain  than  an  advantage ; 
and  have  commiserated  her  being  obliged  to  retain  her 
dominion  over  the  Canadians  by  a  standing  army  of 
16,000  men,  in  a  time  of  profound  peace.  They  have 
seemed  to  me  to  entertain  the  opinion  expressed  by  Lord 
Ashburton  some  time  since  in  the  House  of  Lords,  in  the 
debate  upon  the  affairs  of  Canada,  "  that  it  may  be  well 
doubted  if  there  be  a  power  in  Europe,  possessing  a 
foreign  colony,  which  would  not  be  advantaged  by  the 
loss  of  it." 

Three  questions  now  divide  England  and  America :. 
the  boundary  ;  the  right  of  search  or  visitation  of  Ameri- 
can vessels  in  the  African  seas ;  and  the  attack  upon  the 
Caroline.  Respecting  the  first,  you  long  since  had  the 
independence  and  candor  to  insert  in  the  Guardian,  a 
communication  received  from  the  United  States,  which 
you  pronounced  at  the  time  quite  satisfactory,  as 
establishing  the  justice  of  the  American  claim.  There 
are,  however,  as  I  conceive,  intrinsic  difficulties  apper- 


92  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

taining  to  that  question  which  can  never  be  surmounted, 
except  by  a  reference  of  the  whole  dispute  to  the  arbitra- 
tion of  some  friendly  power.  As  regards  the  second, — 
the  right  of  search, — I  have  endeavored,  in  my  previous 
remarks,  to  justify  the  conduct  of  the  American  govern- 
ment, as  respects  the  demand  of  Great  Britain,  and  I 
hope  with  impartiality.  In  the  case  of  the  Caroline,  it  is 
well  known,  that  a  company  of  her  majesty's  soldiers, 
under  the  command  of  a  British  officer,  invaded  the 
American  territory,  seized  and  burnt  an  American  vessel, 
murdering  one  or  more  persons  on  board ;  that  this  act 
was  contrary  to  the  express  orders  of  Sir  Francis  Head  ; 
that,  notwithstanding,  it  has  been  since  approved  by 
Great  Britain,  and  the  commanding  officer  rewarded. 
America  has  demanded  reparation ;  but  it  has  not  been 
given.  Should  she  continue  to  press  the  demand,  it 
may  be,  that  Lord  Aberdeen  may  persevere  in  deny- 
ing her  redress,  and  remind  her  present  ambassador,  as 
he  did  Mr.  Stevenson,  "that  it  is  for  the  American 
government  to  determine  what  may  be  due  to  a  just 
regard  for  the  national  dignity  and  national  interests." 
His  lordship  may  rest  assured,  that  America  will  not  be 
found  wanting  in  the  maintenance  of  either ;  and  that, 
upon  this  occasion  as  upon  others,  she  will  strictly  adhere 
to  the  rule  laid  down  by  that  distinguished  citizen  and 
patriot,  Andrew  Jackson,  a  to  ask  nothing  that  is  not 
clearly  right,  but  to  submit  to  nothing  which  is  wrong." 
The  above  language  of  Lord  Aberdeen  may  well  be 
denominated  "  pugnacious."  It  is  that  of  pride  arid  hau- 
teur. It  is  the  same  which  Great  Britain  has  too  often 
used  to  nations  less  powerful  than  herself.  It  will  not  be 
heeded  in  America,  but  will  be  answered  only  by  resist- 
ance. War  may  be  the  result;  but  the  United  States, 
animated  by  the  justice  of  their  cause,  will  not  wait  to 
count  the  cost,  when  the  question  of  national  honor  is 


CAPTURES  IN  THE  AFRICAN  SEAS.  93 

concerned.  Great  Britain  would  not,  it  is  believed,  have 
ventured,  under  similar  circumstances,  to  have  used  the 
same  language  to  France.  The  navy  of  the  latter  is  too 
powerful ;  the  blood  of  Frenchmen  is  too  warm ;  the  Brit- 
ish isles  are  too  near  to  Cherbourg  and  Toulon.  It  is 
only  the  other  day,  in  a  war  which  Great  Britain  is 
waging  for  trade,  and  for  the  right  of  poisoning  the 
Chinese,  by  introducing  among  them,  against  the  edicts 
of  the  emperor,  a  deadly  .drug,  upon  which,  we  are 
informed,  the  profits  have  amounted  to  four  millions  ster- 
ling a  year,  that  we  have  heard  of  an  attack  upon  a  forti- 
fied city  called  Amoy,  when  a  mandarin  came  out  to  meet 
the  attacking  fleet  with  a  flag  of  truce,  inquiring  "  why 
so  many  ships  had  come  there  to  trade  at  one  time,  and 
what  commodities  they  required."  What  is  still  more 
remarkable,  the  despatch  of  the  commanding  officer, 
detailing  the  destruction  of  the  citadel  and  capture  of  the 
town,  presented  the  anomaly  of  having  no  list  of  persons 
killed,  and  there  were  only  nine  wounded.  But  let  not 
Great  Britain  flatter  herself  that  it  will  always  be  practica- 
ble to  gain  her  victories  upon  such  easy  terms.  One  can 
easily  call  to  mind  engagements  by  land  and  upon  the 
sea,  where  the  result  has  been  very  different  from  the 
above.  Finally,  it  is  understood  to  be  agreeable  to  the 
self-complacency  of  Englishmen,  in  reference  to  the  exten- 
sive foreign  possessions  of  Great  Britain,  to  be  called  "  the 
modern  Romans."  Let  them,  then,  learn  a  lesson  from 
the  history  of  Rome,  that  a  lawless  ambition  for  conquest, 
and  injustice  towards  the  governments  and  people  of  other 
countries,  are  sure,  sooner  or  later,  to  be  followed  by  the 
decline  and  fall  of  the  nation  which  avails  itself  of  such 
unwarrantable  means  of  aggrandizement. 

AN  AMERICAN. 
January  20th,  1842. 


94  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

In  replying  to  this  letter,  we  may  as  well  observe,  at  the  outset, 
that,  for  the  present,  at  any  rate,  we  shall  abstain  from  any  partic- 
ular reference  to  a  considerable  number  of  subjects  to  which  the 
writer  has  adverted.  Not  that  we  have  the  slightest  disinclination 
to  discuss,  with  our  correspondent,  his  particular  views  of  the 
burning  of  the  Caroline,  the  situation  of  Canada,  the  war  with 
China,  or  any  other  of  the  topics — somewhat  extraneous  to  the 
question  of  the  right  of  search — which  he  has  introduced  into  his 
letter  ;  but  because  we  hold  that  that  question  is  of  itself  of  suffi- 
cient magnitude  and  importance  to  require  the  undivided  attention 
of  both  writer  and  reader  ;  and  that  the  mixing  up  with  it  of  other 
matters,  though  it  may  tend  to  mystify  the  subject,  and  to  conceal 
unsound  reasoning,  can  never  aid  in  the  elucidation  of  truth.  We 
shall,  therefore,  in  this  article,  confine  ourselves  strictly  to  the 
question — or  rather  the  questions,  for  there  are  two — arising  out 
of  the  recent  correspondence  between  the  American  envoy  and  the 
British  government,  in  reference  to  what  is  commonly,  but  rather 
inaccurately,  termed  "  the  right  of  search." 

In  commencing  this  task,  we  feel  a  difficulty,  arising  out  of  a 
fact  which,  we  dare  say,  will  have  become  apparent,  from  the  peru- 
sal of  the  letter  of  An  American  to  some  of  our  readers  who  have 
paid  attention  to  the  subject;  namely,  that  it  scarcely  presents  a 
single  definite  or  tangible  proposition  with  which  we  contend. 
Though  professedly  written  in  reply  to  our  article  of  Saturday 
last,  it  does  not  even  attempt  to  answer  one  of  our  arguments 
against  the  claim  which  Mr.  Stevenson  sets  up.  Our  cor- 
respondent denies  our  charge,  that  Mr.  Stevenson  has  sheltered 
himself  under  generalities,  instead  of  replying  closely  to  the  argu- 
ments of  the  British  ministers.  If  we  were  not  afraid  of  leading 
the  minds  of  our  readers  from  the  main  point  at  issue,  we  could 
easily  prove  our  allegation  by  extracts  from  the  correspondence ; 
and  An  American  must  excuse  us  if  we  say  that  he  has  treated  our 
article  very  much  in  the  same  way  in  which  Mr.  Stevenson  treated 
Lord  Palmerston's  letters.  After  we  had  done  our  best  to  strip 
the  real  question  at  issue  of  all  the  unimportant  considerations  with 
which  it  had  been  loaded,  our  correspondent  has  been  very  suc- 
cessful in  smothering  it  with  extraneous  topics,  until  its  real  shape 
is  effectually  concealed.  Can  any  man,  who  reads  the  letter  of  An 


CAPTURES  IN  THE  AFRICAN  SEAS.  95 

American,  deduce  from  it  the  actual  points  of  difference  between 
the  English  and  American  governments  ?  We  defy  him  to  do  so. 
When  professing  to  describe  the  English  claim,  the  writer  huddles 
it  up  under  the  vague  term  "  right  of  search,"  with  an  allegation, 
most  inaccurate  and  unfounded,  that  it  is  the  same  claim  which  was 
advanced  in  and  prior  to  1812,  and  which  gave  rise  to  the  war 
with  America  !  As  no  discussion  can  proceed  satisfactorily,  until 
its  basis  is  ascertained  and  defined,  we  shall  proceed  to  state  at 
once  what  are  the  two  distinct  questions  arising  out  of  the  recent 
correspondence,  and  then  show  in  what  manner  our  correspond- 
ent has  been  misled,  by  mixing  these  two  questions  together. 

The  questions  are  these  : 

1st  Have  British  ships  a  right  to  capture  or  detain  American 
vessels  known  or  suspected  to  be  engaged  in  the  slave  trade  ? 

£d.  Has  a  British  naval  commander  a  right  to  visit  a  vessel 
displaying  an  American  flag,  but  reasonably  suspected  to  be,  in 
fact,  a  British,  French,  Spanish,  or  Portuguese  slaver  ;  for  the  pur- 
pose of  ascertaining,  from  her  papers,  whether  she  is  an  American 
or  not  ? 

These  are  questions  so  thoroughly  separate  and  distinct,  that  any 
writer  who  mixes  them  together  must  either  be  mistaken  himself, 
or  endeavoring  to  mislead  his  readers.  Yet,  throughout  the  whole 
correspondence  of  Mr.  Stevenson,  there  is  an  obvious  disinclina- 
tion to  keep  them  separate  ;  and  he  repeatedly  answers  the  argu- 
ments of  Lord  Palmerston  on  one  question,  by  allegations  which 
really  apply  only  to  the  other.  Of  course,  it  is  not  our  business 
to  impute  motives  to  Mr.  Stevenson ;  and  all  that  we  shall  say 
about  the  course  he  has  taken  on  this  point  is,  that  it  has  evi- 
dently misled  our  correspondent,  who,  through  the  whole  of  his 
letter,  never  once  seems  to  suspect  that  two  different  questions 
had  been  under  discussion  ;  and  hence  he  has  fallen  into  some 
very  extraordinary  mistakes,  and  has  charged  Lord  Palmerston 
with  inconsistencies  which  have  no  existence,  except  in  his  own 
imagination. 

For  instance,  complaints  were  made  by  Mr.  Stevenson,  to  the 
effect  that  English  vessels  had  captured  vessels  known  to  be 
American,  which  were  found  or  alleged  to  be  engaged  in  the  slave 
trade  ;  and  these  complaints  gave  rise  to  the  first  question  above 


96  WOEKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

enumerated.  Upon  that  question,  and  in  answer  to  Mr.  Steven- 
son's complaints,  Lord  Palmerston  most  distinctly  stated,  that 
Great  Britain  claimed  no  right,  under  the  law  of  nations,  or  under 
any  general  treaty,  to  capture  or  detain  any  American  vessel,  or 
even  to  visit  any  vessel  known  to  be  American  ;  and  to  this  dis- 
claimer he  adhered  throughout  the  whole  of  his  correspond- 
ence. Subsequently,  however,  in  answer  to  other  complaints,  not 
of  capture,  but  of  visitation  and  inspection  of  papers,  which  gave 
rise  to  the  second  of  the  two  questions  above  stated,  his  lordship 
contended  that  the  mere  hoisting  of  an  American  flag  could  not  be 
taken  as  proof  of  the  nationality  of  a  vessel  ;  because  that  flag  can 
be  just  as  easily  hoisted  by  an  English,  French,  Brazilian  or  Span- 
ish slaver,  as  by  an  American  ;  and  he  claimed  for  British  cruis- 
ers the  right  of  visiting  and  examining  any  vessel  which  they  had 
reason  to  suspect  to  be  one  of  those  which  they  were  empowered 
to  capture,  and  of  ascertaining  her  real  character  from  her  papers. 
Of  course,  if  she  was  found  to  be  American,  even  if  filled  with 
.slaves,  all  right  of  interference  with  her  ceased  at  once  ;  and  she 
must  be  permitted  to  proceed  on  her  voyage. 

Now,  in  all  this,  we  can  see  neither  sophistry,  nor  special  plead- 
ing, nor  chicanery,  nor  inconsistency.  It  seems  to  us  that  the 
ground  taken  by  Lord  Palmerston,  in  reference  to  the  two  distinct 
questions  brought  under  his  notice,  is  perfectly  clear,  candid, 
straightforward,  and  consistent.  That  our  correspondent  (no 
doubt  misled  by  Mr.  Stevenson's  letters,)  has  not  understood  the 
real  points  in  dispute,  is  manifest  from  a  question  which  he  asks, 
as  if  he  thought  it  conclusive  of  the  whole  matter.  He  says — 

"  And  now,  sir,  since  you  have  been  pleased  to  pronounce  the  claims  of  America 
so  « unreasonable,' '  absurd,'  and  '  preposterous,'  permit  me  to  ask  a  few  plain, 
simple  questions.  If  the  United  States  had  placed  themselves  in  a  false  position, 
or  asserted  unjust  or  unreasonable  claims,  why  did  Lord  Palmerston,  when  called 
upon  by  the  American  government  for  reparation  for  losses  sustained  by  the  deten- 
tion of  certain  American  vessels  upon  the  African  seas,  justify  the  same  by  reason 
of  the  agreement  between  the  English  and  American  naval  commanders  already 
mentioned  ?  Why  did  he  not  say  at  once,  '  We  had  a  right  to  arrest  and  detain 
these  vessels,  and  shall  do  so  again  under  similar  circumstances '  ?  " 

We  should  have  thought  that  even  the  slightest  attention  to  the 
correspondence  would  have  guarded  our  correspondent  from  the 


CAPTURES  IN  THE  AFRICAN  SEAS.  97 

error  into  which  he  has  here  fallen,  by  following  the  example  of 
Mr.  Stevenson,  and  applying  to  one  question  the  facts  and  the 
reasons  which  belong  only  to  the  other.  Lord  Palmerston  could 
not,  under  a  claim  of  right  to  visit  vessels  for  the  purpose  of 
ascertaining  their  national  character,  justify  the  capture  of  a  ves- 
sel ascertained  to  be  an  American  ;  and  he,  therefore,  showed  that 
where  such  capture  had  taken  place,  they  had  been  made  under 
a  special  convention  concluded  between  the  British  and  American 
naval  commanders  on  the  African  coast.  With  respect  to  that 
convention,  and  to  the  captures  m^de  under  it,  all  we  shall  say  is,  that 
the  American  government  must  settle  with  its  own  officer  any 
complaints  arising  out  of  them  ;  and  we  have  mentioned  it  now 
only  for  the  purpose  of  showing  the  error  into  which  our  corre- 
spondent has  fallen,  respecting  the  real  nature  of  the  claim  set  up 
by  the  English  government.  A  mistake  of  a  similar  character  has 
given  rise  to  another  question  of  the  same  kind.  Our  correspond- 
ent asks, — 

"  And  last,  but  not  least,  if  Great  Britain  or  her  allies  have  a  right  to  exercise 
the  power  claimed  over  American  vessels,  why  has  Great  Britain,  as  stated  by 
Lord  Aberdeen  in  his  letter  of  the  13th  October  last,  deemed  it  necessary  to 
request  the  permission  of  America,  or,  in  other  words,  to  solicit  her  to  become  a 
party  to  the  treaty  which  should  contain  that  permission  ?  " 

To  this  question  we  again  reply,  that  nobody  claims  a  right  to 
exercise  any  power  over  American  vessels  known  to  be  such ;  but, 
if  America  would  become  a  party  to  the  treaty  of  which  our  cor- 
respondent speaks  so  sneeringly,  but  the  real  nature  of  which  he 
apparently  does  not  understand,  all  the  contracting  parties  would 
have  a  right  to  capture  a  slaver,  even  though  known  to  be  an 
American  ;  and  the  exercise  of  this  right  would  do  much  to  put 
down  the  slave-trade,  for  which  the  American  flag  is  now  almost 
the  sole  refuge, — which  will  sufficiently  account  for  the  anxiety 
of  Lord  Palmerston,  that  America  should  become  a  party  to  the 
treaty.  That  treaty,  by  the  way,  gives  no  new  power  to  England, 
but  merely  puts  the  stipulations  hitherto  contained  in  separate 
treaties  with  different  foreign  powers,  into  one  general  convention 
executed  jointly  by  all. 

But,  to  return  to  the  claim,  advanced  by  England,  of  a  right 
of  visitation  of  vessels  suspected  to  be  engaged  in  the  slave  trade, 

13 


98  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

and  liable  to  capture  by  British  vessels :  we  shall  be  glad  if  our 
correspondent,  from  whom  we  hope  to  hear  again,  will  state  his 
views  as  to  the  law  of  nations  upon  this,  the  only  point  at  present 
really  in  dispute  in  connection  with  the  subject  of  search.  As 
he  has  asked  some  questions  which  did  not  bear  upon  the  point, 
we  will  take  the  liberty  of  asking  him  one  or  two  which,  in  our 
opinion,  do  bear  upon  it,  and  to  which  we  shall  be  exceedingly 
glad  to  have  his  answers.  He  is,  no  doubt,  well  aware  of  the 
fact,  pointedly  alluded  to  in  the  message  of  President  Tyler,  and 
perfectly  notorious  to  the  world,  that,  in  carrying  on  the  slave- 
trade  at  the  present  time,  "  the  American  flag  is  greatly  abused 
by  the  abandoned  and  profligate  of  other  nations  ;  "  that,  in  fact, 
the  Spanish  slavers  from  Cuba  almost  invariably  sail  under  it,  and 
seek  to  protect  themselves  by  assuming  an  American  character. 
Now  we  beg  that  he,  keeping  this  fact  in  mind,  will  reply  to  the 
following  queries, — which,  in  our  judgment,  go  to  the  root  of  the 
matter  in  dispute : 

1.  "When  a  captain  of  an  English  cruiser,  acting  under  a  treaty 
with   Spain  for  suppressing  the  slave-trade,  sees  a  vessel   which  he 
has  reason  to  believe  to   be  a  Spanish  slaver,   but  which  hoists  an 
American  flag,  does  our  correspondent  maintain  that  the  English 
officer  has  no  right  to  visit  such  vessel,  and  examine  its  papers  ? 

2.  Suppose  the   officer,  though  acting  in   good  faith,  should  be 
mistaken,   and   that  the  vessel    should  prove  to  be   an   American, 
would  such   visit  and  inspection  involve  a  breach  of  international 
law  ? 

3.  If  so,  upon  what   opinions,  decisions,   or  analogies,   does  our 
correspondent  rest  his  opinion  ? 

We  think  that,  if  our  correspondent  will  answer  these  questions 
candidly,  sincerely,  and  dispassionately,  he  may  do  much  good 
in  the  way  of  removing  prejudice  and  misconception  from  the 
minds  of  others ;  and  perhaps,  in  the  course  of  the  investigation 
which  the  framing  of  his  answers  will  require,  he  may  possibly 
discover  that  he  has  himself  been  a  little  mistaken  ;  in  which  case 
we  feel  confident,  that  we  only  do  him  justice  in  believing  that 
he  will  not  shrink  from  avowing  his  change  of  opinion.  At  all 
events,  it  is  exceedingly  desirable  that  the  merits  of  the  question 
should  be  fully  understood ;  and  if  the  Americans  will,  as  our 


CAPTURES  IN  THE  AFRICAN  SEAS.  99 

correspondent  intimates,  go  to  war,  provided  the  British  claim  of 
visitation  be  persisted  in,  we  hope  that  they  will,  at  any  rate, 
take  care  to  inform  themselves  as  to  what  that  claim  really  is,  and 
not  commence  hostilities  under  an  impression  that  it  is  the  same 
claim  of  searching  for  and  impressing  seamen  in*  American  vessels, 
which  gave  rise  to  the  last  war  between  the  two  countries. 

We  purposely  abstain  from  noticing  some  little  topics  of  irrita- 
tion, which  we  think  would  be  much  better  omitted  in  discussions 
of  international  questions  ;  but  there  is  one  point  mentioned  by 
our  correspondent,  on  which  we  cannot  help  saying  a  few  words. 
Our  correspondent  charges  Lord  Palmerston  with  flippant,  indis- 
creet, and  uncourteous  remarks  upon  the  American  flag ;  but  we 
think  that  a  very  little  consideration  will  convince  him  that  his  charge 
has  no  good  foundation.  Of  the  real  and  genuine  American  flag, 
the  emblem  of  the  power  and  independence  of  the  United  States, 
neither  Lord  Palmerston  nor  any  other  sensible  man  would  speak 
otherwise  than  with  respect.  But  when  a  flag  is  forged  and 
counterfeited, — when,  instead  of  truly  representing  the  national 
character  of  the  vessel  that  bears  it,  it  is  made  the  cover  of  deceit 
and  falsehood, — whether  it  may  resemble  the  "  star-spangled  ban- 
ner," or  the  union  jack,  it  is  nothing  better  than  a  fraudulent  rag, 
and  deserves  no  respect  from  anybody.  Now,  it  was  of  this  coun- 
terfeit and  fraudulent  flag  that  Lord  Palmerston  spoke  in  his  letter  ; 
and  we  cannot  but  think,  that  the  sensitiveness  which  our  corre- 
spondent displays  on  the  subject  is  very  much  misplaced. 


[From  the  Manchester  Guardian,  January  29,  1842.] 
THE  RIGHT   OF   SEARCH. 

WE  have  received  the  following  further  communication  from  the 
writer  of  the  letter  which  appeared  in  the  Guardian  of  Saturday 
last: 

To  the  Editor  of  the  Manchester  Guardian : 

SIR, — In  sending  you  a  communication  under  date  the 
20th  instant,  nothing  could  be  more  distant  from  my 


100  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

thoughts  than  entering  upon  a  newspaper  controversy  ; 
nor  is  it  my  intention  to  continue  a  discussion  which.  I 
fear,  must  have  already  wearied  the  patience  of  your  read- 
ers. It  appeared  to  me,  on  the  perusal  of  your  editorial 
remarks  of  the  fifteenth  of  January,  upon  the  correspond- 
ence between  Lords  Palmerston  and  Aberdeen,  and  the 
American  ambassador,  that  you  had  mis-stated,  not  to  say 
perverted,  unintentionally  or  otherwise,  the  true  meaning 
of,  at  any  rate,  one  of  the  writers  ;  and,  being  a  personal 
friend  of  Mr.  Stevenson,  and  always  desirous  of  defend- 
ing the  character  of  my  country  when  unfairly  attacked, 
my  wish  was  solely  to  call  the  attention  of  your  readers 
to  the  correspondence  itself,  hoping  they  might  find  in  it 
a  refutation  of  your  statements,  and  a  confirmation  of  my 
own.  The  prominent  place  assigned  by  you  with  so  much 
courtesy  to  that  communication,  together  with  your 
remarks,  leads  me  to  believe  that  my  object  will  have 
been  attained ;  and,  therefore,  our  correspondence  must 
end  with  the  present  letter. 

You  commence  your  remarks  by  saying,  that  my  com- 
munication, "  though  professedly  written  in  reply  to  your 
article  of  Saturday,  the  fifteenth  of  January,  does  not 
even  attempt  to  answer  one  of  your  arguments  against 
the  claim  which  Mr.  Stevenson  has  set  up."  In  answer  to 
this,  permit  me  to  observe,  that  Mr.  Stevenson  "  has  set 
up  no  claim  whatever."  On  the  contrary,  it  is  Great  Brit- 
ain, or  rather  her  government,  which  "  has  set  up  a  claim," 
as  I  trust  I  have  proved  in  my  first  letter ;  and,  if  my 
communication  of  the  twentieth  instant  was  no  reply  to 
your  article  of  the  fifteenth  instant,  as  asserted  by  you,  I 
may  truly  aver  that  I  have  only  followed  the  example 
which  I  had  before  me  in  your  editorial  remarks  of  the 
above-named  date,  upon  the  correspondence  itself.  After 
repeated  reference  to  those  remarks,  I  have  been  utterly 
unable  to  discover  any  thing  which  has  even  the  sem- 


CAPTURES  IN  THE  AFRICAN  SEAS.  101 

blance  of  "  an  argument."  I  was,  therefore,  compelled  to 
have  recourse  to  the  correspondence  itself;  and,  in  com- 
mencing my  observations,  I  spoke  accordingly,  not  of 
your  "  arguments,"  but  of  "  your  remarks,"  "  the  conclu- 
sions at  which  you  had  arrived,"  and  of  "  the  charge 
against  Mr.  Stevenson."  The  greater  part  of  the  article 
is  taken  up  in  an  attempt  to  define  the  word  "  belligerent 
right,"  in  which  I  must  think  that  you  have  succeeded 
wonderfully  in  introducing  confusion  into  what  was  before 
quite  plain  and  evident.  Af'ter  having  called  the  claim 
alleged  by  you  to  have  been  set  up  by  Mr.  Stevenson 
"  unreasonable,"  "  absurd,"  and  "  preposterous,"  it  was 
incumbent  upon  you  to  prove  it  so.  Instead  of  this,  after 
having,  as  it  appears  to  me,  mis-stated  his  argument,  and 
charging  him  with  claiming  what  he  never  did  claim,  you 
undertake  to  give  your  readers  a  list  of  what  you  assert 
may  be  called  "  belligerent  rights." 

You  never  attempt  to  prove  the  difference,  (which 
however,  you  assert  exists,)  between  a  right  to  search  for 
British  seamen  on  board  of  American  vessels,  (which  I 
have  declared  was  one  of  the  principal  causes  of  the  war 
of  1812,)  and  a  search  for  slaves,  which  is  the  claim  now 
set  up  by  her  majesty's  government.  But  every  one 
must  perceive  it  can  make  no  difference  to  America  what 
may  be  the  object  of  the  search,  provided  a  foreign  nation 
shall  have  assumed  it  against  her  permission,  and  in  viola- 
tion of  that  freedom  of  the  seas  which  is  guarantied  to 
her  by  the  law  of  nations.  If  Great  Britain,  in  conse- 
quence of  having  made  a  treaty  with  the  four  other  great 
powers  of  Europe,  can  assume  with  impunity  the  right  of 
establishing  what  a  London  journal  has  rightly  denom- 
inated "  a  police,"  upon  the  high  seas,  and  in  the  exercise 
of  the  same,  can  subject  American  vessels  to  search  and 
detention,  in  pursuit  of  slaves,  what  can  prevent  her 
assumption  of  the  same  power  for  any  other  object  she 


102  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

may  desire  to  accomplish?  We  all  know  what  these 
great  powers  have  done  upon  the  continent  in  the  form  of 
what  are  called  passports,  which  subject  every  foreigner 
to  expensive  and  vexatious  detentions  and  annoyances 
from  every  petty  custom-house  subaltern  met  with  on  the 
road.  We  also  know  that  British  travellers  have  been  the 
loudest  and  most  violent  in  their  condemnation  and  exe- 
cration of  this  system,  which  they  have  denounced  as  the 
meanest  and  most  degrading  species  of  espionage,  tyr- 
anny, and  oppression.  Indeed,  many  of  them  have 
openly  resisted  it.  What,  then,  must  be  our  surprise, 
when  we  now  witness  the  attempt  of  the  government  of 
Great  Britain  to  establish  the  same  kind  of  offensive 
police  upon  the  seas  ?  Who  would  ever  have  expected  to 
have  found  its  establishment  and  exercise  defended  in  the 
far-famed  Quarterly  Review  upon  the  very  same  grounds  ? 
As  if  there  was  any  analogy  between  the  sea  —  the  high- 
way of  nations  —  and  the  territory  of  a  continental  king, 
emperor,  or  petty  prince,  who  possesses  indisputably  the 
right  of  establishing  what  regulations  he  pleases,  upon  his 
own  territory,  and  over  his  own  subjects,  but  whose  powrer 
stops  there.  It  only  proves  that  the  Quarterly  Revieiv,  as 
also  Lord  Palmerston,  Lord  Aberdeen,  and  the  editor  of 
the  Guardian,  are  ready  to  avail  themselves  of  every  spe- 
cies of  aid,  to  acquire  the  jurisdiction,  so  long  desired,  over 
the  freedom  of  the  seas,  and  the  ships  of  the  commercial 
rival  of  Great  Britain. 

You  have  evaded  an  answer  to  my  question,  why  Lord 
Palmerston,  when  called  upon  by  Mr.  Stevenson  for 
reparation  of  losses  sustained  by  the  detention  of  certain 
vessels  sailing  under  the  American  flag,  availed  himself 
of  the  alleged  agreement  between  the  English  and  Amer- 
ican commanders,  by  attempting  to  prove  that  Mr.  Ste- 
venson's complaint  respected  "  the  capture  "  of  a  vessel 
sailing  under  the  American  flag,  and  not  its  search  or 


CAPTURES  IN  THE  AFRICAN  SEAS.  103 

detention.  On  reference  to  the  correspondence,  I  do  not 
find  the  word  "  capture,"  or  any  other  word  having  its 
meaning,  in  one  of  the  earlier  letters  of  Mr.  Stevenson,  or 
of  Lord  Palmerston.  In  his  lordship's  note  to  Mr.  Steven- 
son, dated  the  17th  August,  1841,  he  informs  him,  "that 
he  sends  him  a  copy  of  the  agreements  entered  into 
between  the  English  and  American  commanders,  on  the 
subject  of  the  detention  of  the  vessels,  the  Douglas,  the 
lago,  and  the  Hero,  by  her  majesty's  cruisers."  The  first 
time  we  meet  with  the  word  "  capture  "  is  in  Lord  Pal- 
merston's  note  of  the  27th  August,  relating  to  the  brig 
called  the  Mary.  In  this,  his  lordship,  after  having  stated 
the  circumstances  under  which  that  vessel  was  seized, 
remarks :  "  Under  these  circumstances,  the  undersigned 
is  of  opinion  that  the  commander  of  her  majesty's  ship 
Forrester  was  fully  justified  in  considering  the  Mary  to 
be  a  Spanish  vessel,  and,  consequently,  in  taking  her 
before  the  British  and  Spanish  court;  and,  accordingly, 
when  the  British  commissioners  reported  to  her  majesty's 
government,  that  the  judges  had  refused  to  allow  the 
Mary  to  be  libelled  in  that  court,  under  the  impression 
that  the  mere  fact  of  her  having  the  American  flag 
hoisted  should  have  protected  her  from  visitation  and 
search  by  a  British  cruiser,  the  British  commissioners 
were  told  that  there  was,  in  the  opinion  of  her  majesty's 
government,  reason  to  suppose  that  the  Mary  was  a 
Spanish,  and  not  an  American,  vessel;  and  that  the 
judges  ought,  therefore,  to  have  allowed  her  to  be  libelled 
in  the  British  and  Spanish  court."  You  state,  that  I 
have  confounded  two  things  essentially  different,  and 
that  "  two  distinct  questions  "  were  brought  by  Mr.  Ste- 
venson under  the  notice  of  Lord  Palmerston.  I  have 
searched  in  vain  to  find  "  these  two  distinct  questions  " 
in  the  letters  of  Mr.  Stevenson ;  nor  does  Lord  Palmers- 
ton  anywhere  speak  of  them  when  called  upon  for  repara- 


104  WORKS  OF  S.  D  BRADFORD. 

tion.  The  complaint  of  the  first  is  always  of  the  "  deten- 
tion "  or  "  search "  of  certain  vessels  sailing  under  the 
American  flag ;  and  the  reply  of  the  latter  is  always  the 
same,  viz., — "that  it  was  done  in  consequence  of  the 
agreement"  before  mentioned.  Again,  Lord  Palmerston, 
in  his  letter  dated  the  27th  August,  informs  Mr.  Steven- 
son, "  that*  if,  in  some  few  cases,  such  merchant-men  have 
been  searched,  when  suspected  of  having  been  engaged 
in  the  slave  trade,  this  has  been  done  solely  because  the 
British  officer  who  made  the  search  imagined  that  he 
was  acting  in  conformity  with  the  wishes  of  the  United 
States  government."  I  would  here  call  your  attention  to 
the  reason  assigned  by  the  British  commissioners  for 
having  refused  to  libel  the  Mary,  viz., — that,  in  their 
opinion,  "  the  fact  of  her  having  the  American  flag  hoisted 
should  have  protected  her  from  visitation  and  search  by 
a  British  cruiser."  Permit  me  to  inquire,  why  these 
commissioners  came  to  this  conclusion  in  the  case  of  the 
Mary,  unless  they  had  always  acted  upon  this  principle 
in  former  cases  of  detention  or  seizure,  which  may  have 
been  brought  under  their  notice ;  and,  if  so,  does  it  not 
prove  conclusively,  that  the  British  government,  in  giv- 
ing them  new  instructions,  are  attempting  to  set  up  a 
new  claim,  as  was  asserted  in  my  last  communication  ; 
or,  rather,  that  it  has  revived  its  claim  u  to  the  odious 
right  of  search  in  a  form  never  before  avowed,  and  to  an 
extent  never  before  asserted  ?  " 

You  will  please  also,  to  observe,  that  Lord  Palmerston 
explicitly  disclaims  all  right  to  search  American  vessels, 
even  "  when  suspected  of  having  been  engaged  in  the 
slave-trade,"  and  apologizes  for  what  had  occurred  in  the 
same  manner  as  before.  Not  a  word  is  said  about  cap- 
turing prior  to  his  letter  of  the  27th  August.  And  now, 
will  the  editor  of  the  Guardian  inform  his  readers,  in  what 
possible  way  Great  Britain  can  execute  the  treaty  she 


CAPTURES  IN  THE  AFRICAN  SEAS.  105 

has  signed,  without  frequently  violating  the  American 
flag  in  the  manner  already  described,  and  which  Lord 
Palmerston  admits  she  has  no  right  to  do  ?  And  who, 
that  reflects  for  a  moment  upon  the  incessant  and  inter- 
minable complaints  and  reclamations  which  the  exercise 
of  such  a  claim  must  inevitably  produce  between  "  two 
such  energetic  people,"  would  desire  to  see  it  attempted  ? 
Nor  is  your  reply  more  successful  to  another  question 
of  mine ;  viz.,  Why,  if  Great* Britain  had  a  right  to  exer- 
cise the  power  claimed  over  American  vessels,  has  she 
requested  "  permission  "  of  America  to  do  so,  or,  in  other 
words,  solicited  her  to  become  a  party  to  a  treaty  which 
should  contain  that  power  ?  Here  you  assert  that  "  I 
have  fallen  into  another  error,"  of  "  a  similar  character  " 
to  the  first ;  and  in  consequence,  so  far  as  I  can  understand 
your  meaning,  of  not  comprehending  the  stipulations  of 
the  treaty  concluded  by  the  "  Christian  League."  You 
claim  to  have  a  superior  knowledge  of  the  treaty ;  and,  if 
so,  why  have  you  not  stated  what  its  terms  are,  to  which 
Great  Britain  has  solicited  America  to  accede  ?  If  the 
principal  article  in  it  be  not  "the  permission"  to  board, 
visit,  or  search  vessels  sailing  under  the  American  flag,  in 
the  African  seas,  what  is  it  ?  Have  you  omitted  to  fur- 
nish the  information  re  quired,  because,  as  very  conveniently 
alleged  by  you  in  reference  to  another  declaration  of  mine, 
"  you  were  afraid  of  leading  the  minds  of  your  readers 
from  the  main  point  at  issue ?"  You  assert  "that  the 
treaty  gives  no  new  power  to  England  ; "  but  the  London 
Morning  Post,  of  the  21st  December,  declares,  "  that  it 
gives  extended  powers  to  the  right  of  search,  in  order  to 
give  the  fuller  effect  to  the  provisions  of  the  treaty." 
Which  statement  are  we  to  believe  ?  You  intimate  that 
the  principal  article  respects  "the  right  to  capture  a 
slaver,  even  though  known  to  be  an  American; "  in  other 
words,  to  permit  English  cruisers  to  execute  the  laws 


106  WORKS  OF  S.  D  BRADFORD. 

which  the  United  States  have  passed  so  many  years  since, 
for  the  suppression  of  the  slave  trade.  But  you  have 
not  informed  your  readers  how  an  American  or  other 
vessel  could  be  ascertained  to  be  a  slaver  without  first 
boarding,  detaining,  or  searching  her ;  and,  therefore,  that 
permission  must  also  have  been  asked ;  for  surely  you 
would  not  have  a  vessel  captured  upon  the  African  seas, 
when  met  with  by  one  of  her  majesty's  cruisers,  without 
first  ascertaining  that  she  was  a  slaver.  But  if  you  have 
omitted  to  inform  your  readers  what  the  treaty  does  con- 
tain, Lord  Aberdeen  has  supplied  that  omission ;  for,  in 
his  letter  of  the  13th  October,  he  declares  "his  proposal" 
to  have  been,  not — what  you  have  intimated — "  the  right 
to  capture  American  vessels,"  but  a  right  to  search  them. 
"  A  mutual  right  of  search,"  says  his  lordship,  "  regulated 
in  such  a  manner  as  to  prevent  the  occurrence  of  any 
irritating  circumstances,  has  always  appeared  to  the 
undersigned  as  the  most  reasonable,  the  most  simple,  and 
most  effectual  method  of  attaining  the  great  object  which 
both  governments  have  in  view."  Let  your  impartial 
readers  compare  this  open  declaration  of  Lord  Aberdeen 
with  the  various  passages  contained  in  your  article  of  the 
22d  instant,  in  which,  unable  to  answer  satisfactorily  the 
questions  proposed,  you  have  charged  me  with  having  "mis- 
understood the  real  points  in  dispute,"  of  "  having  fallen 
into  an  error,"  of  "  unsound  reasoning,"  of  "  being  a  little 
mistaken/'  and  of  "smothering  the  real  question  with  extra- 
neous topics."  May  I  not  be  permitted  to  repeat,  what  I 
stated  in  my  first  communication,  that  "  I  find  it  difficult 
to  believe  that  you  can  have  read  the  correspondence 
with  your  usual  attention  and  care?"  In  my  last  com- 
munication, I  stated  that  "the  right  of  search,"  now 
claimed  by  Great  Britain,  is  the  same  which  was  advanced 
in  and  prior  to  1812,  and  which  gave  rise  to  the  war  with 
America.  This  assertion  you  have  ridiculed  as  "most 


CAPTURES  IN  THE  AFRICAN  SEAS.  107 

inaccurate  and  unfounded."  What,  then,  will  be  the 
astonishment  of  your  readers  to  be  informed,  that,  if  they 
will  only  refer  to  your  editorial  remarks  contained  in  the 
Guardian  of  the  5th  January,  they  will  there  find  the  same 
assertion  made  by  yourself?  In  detailing  the  various 
causes  of  disaffection  between  England  and  America,  you 
express  yourself  in  the  following  words : — "  Thus  the  old 
boundary  question,  which,  as  a  matter  of  popular  excite- 
ment, had  slumbered  from  *1783  to  1836,  has  become 
exceedingly  prominent  on  account  of  the  supposed  weak- 
ness of  England,  arising  from  the  disaffection  of  the  Cana- 
dian people ;  and  the  old  and  much-vexed  question  of  the 
right  of  search  has  received  new  importance  from  the 
affair  of  the  Caroline,  and  the  recent  captures  or  deten- 
tions of  vessels,  alleged  to  be  American,  on  the  coast  of 
Africa"! 

As  respects  the  charge  of  my  having  spoken  "  sneer- 
ingly "  of  the  treaty  entered  into  by  the  "  Christian 
League,"  it  is  too  early  to  have  heard  what  reception  the 
news  of  its  signature  may  have  met  with  in  the  United 
States ;  but  if  its  reception  there  be  the  same  which  it 
has  encountered  here,  and  from  a  journal  too  which  may 
almost  be  denominated  an  Englishman's  testament,  the 
London  Times,  it  is  to  be  feared  the  self-complacency  of 
Lord  Palmerston  will  not  be  much  gratified.  In  refer- 
ence to  that  treaty,  in  the  London  Times  of  the  twenty- 
second  of  December  last,  will  be  found  the  following 
remarks,  which  I  recommend  to  the  particular  attention 
of  the  editor  of  the  Guardian,  and  of  his  readers :  "  The 
French  slave-trade,  though  nominally  suppressed  in  1819, 
has  never  ceased  to  be  carried  on  systematically,  and  with 
vigor.  Nor  is  very  much  gained,  by  the  concession,  on 
the  part  of  Austria,  Prussia,  and  Russia,  that  the  same 
measure  may  be  dealt  to  their  subjects.  It  is  not  from 
these  states,  confined,  as  their  power  and  influence  is,  to 


108  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

the  eastern  hemisphere,  or  even  within  narrower  bounds, 
nor  even  from  France,  despoiled  of  her  colonies,  that  we 
can  look  for  any  really  effectual  cooperation  in  putting  an 
end  to  this  standing  iniquity.  Prussia  and  Austria  may 
well  afford,  (honest  people  !)  to  sit  at  home,  and  denounce 
and  renounce  all  slave  dealers,  with  their  aiders  and  abet- 
tors, as  if  the  colliers  of  Staffordshire  and  manufacturers 
of  Derbyshire  were  to  sign  a  round  robin  against  smug- 
gling of  French  brandy.  Such  documents  cost  little,  and 
do  little;  but  try  Dorsetshire  and  the  Isle  of  Wight. 

"  It  is  not  your  inland  powers,  with  half-a-dozen  sea- 
ports, and  no  trade  beyond  the  Mediterranean  or  Baltic, 
however  great  their  European  credit,  whose  influence 
will  be  here  effectual.  Spain,  Portugal,  the  Brazils,  and 
America, — these  are  the  criminals,  and  these  only  are 
the  powers,  from  whose  assistance,  voluntary  or  other- 
wise, any  true  amelioration  must  result.  And  while,  in 
spite  of  the  meagre  concessions  which  we  have  extorted 
from  Spain  by  '  legitimate  influence,'  or  bought  from  her 
by  our  gold,  her  Cuba  merchants  can  show  fortunes 
made  in  their  infamous  traffic,  and  complacently  boast 
that,  if  but  one  out  of  three  ventures  escape  the 
British  cruisers,  it  well  answers  their  purpose;  while  par- 
liamentary evidence  tells  us  that,  before  the  court  of 
Havana,  established  for  the  express  purpose  of  con- 
demning slavers,  no  seizure  of  a  slave  vessel  has  ever 
taken  place  but  at  the  interference  and  denunciation  of 
the  British  commissioners ;  and  that,  even  then,  such 
seizure  has  only  been  made  to  be  followed  by  perfect 
acquittal  in  the  Spanish  tribunals ;  as  long  as  this  goes 
on  on  the  spot,  it  is  a  mere  farce  to  congratulate  ourselves 
on  the  protest,  noble  protest  it  may  be,  of  distant  powers 
scarcely  interested  in  the  question,  or  able  to  exercise  an 
influence  upon  it,  as  if  we  had  gained  any  real  and  sub- 
stantial victory.  If  we  can  believe  Mr.  M'Culloch, 


CAPTURES  IN  THE  AFRICAN  SEAS.  109 

that,  between  the  years  1680  and  1700,  no  less  than  three 
hundred  thousand  slaves  were  imported  into  the  West 
Indies,  and  that,  in  the  succeeding  eighty-six  years,  six 
hundred  and  ten  thousand  were  imported  into  Jamaica 
only,  we  cannot  but  feel  thankful  that  these  times  of 
guilt  seem,  at  any  rate,  gone  for  ever." 

From  the  above  statement  of  the  number  of  slaves  im- 
ported into  Jamaica,  the  conclusion  would  seem  to  follow 
that,  if  importations  of  slave's  have  been  made  into  the 
other  colonies  of  her  majesty  upon  a  similar  scale,  they 
must  be  well  stocked ;  and  a  person  disposed  to  be  unchar- 
itable in  his  judgment  of  the  motives  of  Great  Britain, 
might  attribute  her  extraordinary  zeal  to  prevent  the 
further  extension  of  the  slave-trade  to  the  desire  to  in- 
crease the  value  of  what  persons  in  trade  denominate 
"  stock  on  hand ; "  for,  although  an  Act  of  Parliament  has 
emancipated  the  slaves  in  the  British  colonies,  every  one 
knows,  that  the  value  of  a  West  India  estate  depends  upon 
the  price  of  sugar  and  coffee  ;  and  the  readers  of  the 
Guardian,  at  any  rate,  cannot  be  ignorant,  that  the  prin- 
cipal competitor,  with  which  the  British  West  India  Pro- 
prietors have  to  contend,  is  the  Brazils,  into  which  slaves 
continue  to  be  imported,  as  is  affirmed,  at  the  rate  of  fifty 
thousand  a  year. 

And  now,  as  respects  the  questions  contained  in  your 
article  of  the  twenty-second  instant,  were  I  disposed,  I 
might  deny  the  courtesy  of  your  proposing  questions  to 
be  answered  by  me,  until  you  had  first  replied  to  those 
which  I  had  previously  put  to  you ;  and  I  trust  I  have 
proved,  that  to  neither  of  my  interrogatories  can  any 
answer  be  found  in  your  article  of  the  twenty-second 
instant.  But  I  would  not  avail  myself  of  any  want  of 
inclination  or  of  ability  on  your  part ;  and  therefore,  in 
reply  to  your  first  question,  viz., — "  When  a  captain  of  an 
English  cruiser,  acting  under  a  treaty  with  Spain,  for  sup- 


110  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

pressing  the  slave-trade,  sees  a  vessel,  which  he  has  rea- 
son to  believe  to  be  a  Spanish  slaver,  but  which  hoists  an 
American  flag,  does  our  correspondent  maintain  that  the 
English  officer  has  no  right  to  visit  such  vessel,  and  exam- 
ine its  papers  ?  " — my  answer  is,  that  America  seeks  no 
jurisdiction  over,  nor  does  she  protect  the  ships,  be  they 
slavers,  suspected  slavers,  or  what  they  may,  of  any  for- 
eign nation  sailing  under  any  flag  they  may  choose  to 
hoist ;  but  does,  and  always  will  deny  the  right  to  stop, 
examine,  detain,  or  interfere,  in  any  way  whatever,  with 
American  ships  sailing  under  her  own  flag,  in  time  of 
peace,  upon  the  high  seas ;  and  that,  if  the  right  now 
claimed  by  Great  Britain,,  in  order  to  execute  the  terms 
of  her  treaty  with  the  other  great  powers  of  Europe,  can- 
not be  exercised  without  "  that  visitation  "  or  "  interrup- 
tion "  over  her  vessels  and  navigation,  described  by 
Sir  William  Scott,  and  which  he  declares  to  be  contrary 
to  the  law  of  nations,  America  will  never  submit  to  the 
exercise  of  that  right,  contrary  to  her  consent,  either  on 
the  part  of  Great  Britain,  or  of  any  other  nation  upon  the 
face  of  the  globe. 

From  this  it  follows,  in  answer  to  your  second  ques- 
tion,— viz.,  "  Suppose  the  officer,  though  acting  in  good 
faith,  should  be  mistaken,  and  that  the  vessel  should 
prove  to  be  an  American,  would  such  visit  and  search 
involve  a  breach  of  international  law  ?  " — that  such  con- 
duct would  "  involve  a  breach  of  international  law." 
And,  finally,  to  your  third  and  last  question — viz.,  "  If 
so,  upon  what  opinions,  decisions,  or  analogies,  does  our 
correspondent  rest  his  opinion  ?  " — my  answer  is,  that,  in 
spite  of  your  very  friendly  suggestion  as  respects  "  the 
investigation  which  the  framing  of  my  answers  will 
require,"  after  the  decision  so  emphatically  pronounced 
by  Sir  William  Scott  and  resting  upon  a  well-known  law 
of  nations,  I  would  not  be  guilty  of  the  presumption  of 


CAPTURES  IN  THE  AFRICAN  SEAS.  HI 

adding  another  word  upon  a  point  which  has  been  settled 
by  such  high  authority,  and  which  no  one,  to  my  knowl- 
edge, has  ever  ventured  to  call  in  question.  I  do  not 
forget  the  courteous  and  feeling  manner  in  which  you 
solicited  "  the  indulgence  "  of  your  readers  for  my  last 
communication  ;  but  I  must  think  that  a  newspaper  dis- 
cussion, upon  a  point  so  well  established,  would  be  deemed 
a  work  of  supererogation,  not  only  on  the  part  of  the 
humble  individual  who  now  addresses  you,  but  even  on 
that  of  the  editor  of  the  Manchester  Guardian. 

AN  AMERICAN. 
January  27th,  1842. 

Of  the  preceding  very  long  letter,  the  two  last  paragraphs,  con- 
taining together  about  fifty  lines,  are  to  the  purpose,  because  they 
relate  to  the  only  point  now  at  issue  between  the  British  and 
American  governments.  As  to  the  rest  of  the  letter,  with  all  due 
respect  for  our  correspondent,  we  feel  bound  to  say,  that  it  has 
apparently  been  written  for  the  purpose  of  keeping  that  point  as 
much  as  possible  out  of  sight,  and  diverting  the  attention  of  the 
reader  to  topics  which  are  either  wholly  immaterial,  or  of  compara- 
tively small  consequence.  Perhaps  we  should  have  best  consulted 
the  taste  and  convenience  of  our  readers,  by  confining  our  remarks 
entirely  to  the  two  paragraphs  above  specified ;  but  we  must  crave 
their  indulgence  for  a  brief  allusion  to  one  or  two  points  in  the 
previous  portion  of  the  letter,  which  seems  in  some  degree  neces- 
sary for  the  purpose  of  clearing  the  way  to  the  real  question  at 
issue. 

It  will  be  seen,  that  a  large  portion  of  the  letter  is  devoted  to  a 
very  elaborate  attempt  to  prove,  that  the  right  of  visitation,  for  the 
purpose  of  ascertaining  national  character,  now  claimed  by  Great 
Britain,  is  precisely  the  same  right  of  search  which  was  formerly 
resisted  by  the  Americans,  and  which  gave  rise  to  the  last  war 
between  the  two  countries.  Our  correspondent  says,  that  we 
( '  never  attempt  to  prove  the  difference  between  a  right  to  search 
for  British  seamen  on  board  of  American  vessels,  and  a  search  for 
slaves,  which  is  the  claim  now  set  up  by  her  majesty's  govern- 


WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

ment."  If  this  statement  was  correct, — if  the  English  government 
did  set  up  any  claim  to  search  American  vessels  for  slaves,  there 
would  be,  at  all  events,  some  analogy  between  the  two  questions., 
and  it  might  have  been  incumbent  upon  us  to  show  the  difference 
between  them.  But  how  stands  the  fact?  Does  Great  Britain 
set  up  any  claim  of  right  to  search  American  vessels  for  slaves  ? 
Nothing  of  the  sort :  any  such  right  is  distinctly  and  emphatically 
disclaimed  by  Lord  Palmerston;  and  therefore  there  is  not  the 
slightest  resemblance  between  the  right  of  visitation  now  claimed 
(the  exercise  of  which,  in  time  of  war,  was  never  objected  to  by 
•anybody,)  and  the  power  of  examining  and  impressing  the  crews 
of  American  vessels,  which  the  government  of  that  country  most 
strenuously,  and,  we  think,  with  good  reason,  disputed  and 
resisted. 

This  fact  disposes  at  once  of  the  greater  part  of  our  correspond- 
ent's remarks,  and  furnishes  the  ground  of  an  answer  to  the  two 
long  paragraphs  which  our  correspondent  has  devoted  to  a  defence 
of  the  two  questions  contained  in  his  former  letter.  He  now 
intimates,  that  we  were  incorrect  in  saying,  that  Mr.  Stevenson 
complained  of  the  capture  of  certain  American  vessels,  and  says, 
that  he  can  find  no  use  of  the  word  "  capture,"  or  any  analogous 
word,  in  Mr.  Stevenson's  letters.  Very  likely  not ;  but  he  will 
find  a  statement  of  facts,  which  amount  to  something  very  like 
capture.  At  all  events,  after  the  visitation  for  the  purpose  of 
ascertaining  national  character,  vessels  alleged  to  be,  and  appear- 
ing from  their  papers  to  be,  American,  were  detained  for  several 
days.  Yet  our  correspondent  asked,  Why  did  not  Lord  Palmer s- 
ton  seek  to  justify  this  protracted  detention  of  a  vessel  known  to 
be  American,  under  the  alleged  right  of  visitation,  for  the  purpose 
of  ascertaining  national  character  ?  He  might  just  as  well  have 
asked,  why  his  lordship  did  not  set  up  that  right  of  visitation  as 
a  justification  of  the  burning  of  the  Caroline.  But  such  are  the 
absurdities  into  which  very  acute  men  are  perpetually  driven  when 
seeking  to  prop  up  a  bad  cause. 

As  to  the  allegation,  that  we  have  asserted  the  identity  of  the 
old  question  of  the  right  of  search  with  that  which  has  recently 
sprung  up,  our  correspondent  must  have  been  disposed  to  be  face- 
tious when  he  penned  that  part  of  his  letter.  The  quotation  from 


CAPTURES  IN  THE  AFRICAN  SEAS.  H3 

the   Guardian  bears  no  such  meaning  as  that  which  he   ascribes 
to  it. 

Enough,  however,  on  these  preliminary  points.  Our  corre- 
spondent has,  at  last  —  and  evidently  with  much  reluctance,  at 
which  we  do  not  wonder  —  come  fairly  up  to  the  real  point  in  dis- 
pute ;  and  to  that  we  shall  address  the  few  additional  remarks 
which  we  have  to  make.  It  will  be  seen,  that  our  correspondent, 
in  replying  to  our  questions  (in  one  of  which,  by  the  way,  he  has, 
we  hope,  unintentionally  made  an  important  alteration,  by  substi- 
tuting the  word  "  search  "  for  "  inspection,")  says,  as  we  expected 
he  would  say,  that  a  visitation  of  an  American  vessel,  for.  the  mere 
purpose  of  ascertaining  her  national  character,  though  made  under 
reasonable  grounds  of  suspicion  that  she  was  Spanish,  would 
involve  a  breach  of  international  law  ;  and  he  says,  this  is  a  well- 
established  point,  and  has  been  settled  by  a  decision  of  Sir 
William  Scott,  which  is  referred  to  by  Mr.  Stevenson,  in  his  cor- 
respondence with  Lord  Aberdeen.  From  the  way  in  which  our 
correspondent  speaks  of  this  decision,  those  of  our  readers  who 
have  not  paid  much  attention  to  the  subject  may  probably  suppose 
that  it  was  made  upon  some  case  involving  the  point  now  in  dis- 
pute ;  that  Sir  William  Scott  had  actually  pronounced  a  judgment 
upon  the  question  of  visitation,  for  the  purpose  of  ascertaining 
national  character.  They  will  be  somewhat  surprised  to  learn, 
that  no  such  point  was  involved  in  the  case ;  which  was  one  of 
actual  capture  and  confiscation.  A  French  vessel,  engaged  in  the 
slave-trade,  was  taken  by  an  English  cruiser,  at  a  time  when  there 
was  no  treaty  between  the  two  countries  authorizing  the  capture. 
Sir  William  Scott,  of  course,  pronounced  the  capture  illegal ;  and 
the  only  wonder  is,  that  any  body  should  ever  have  held  a  con- 
trary opinion.  But  this  decision  has  no  more  bearing  upon  the 
right  of  visitation,  than  the  judgment  which  displayed  the  wisdom 
of  Solomon. 

We  should  not,  however,  be  acting  candidly  by  our  readers,  if 
we  did  not  state  that,  in  giving  his  judgment  as  to  the  illegality  of 
the  capture,  Sir  William  Scott  made  use  of  some  expressions  which, 
at  first  sight,  seem  to  countenance  the  opinion  advanced  by  our  cor- 
respondent. Sir  William  said : 

15 


114  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

"  I  can  find  no  authority  that  gives  the  right  of  interruption  to  the  navigation  of 
states  upon  the  high  seas,  except  that  which  the  right  of  war  gives  to  belligerents 
against  neutrals.  No  nation  can  exercise  a  right  of  visitation  and  search  upon 
the  common  and  unappropriated  parts  of  the  ocean,  except  upon  the  belligerent 
claim." 

Now  this  observation,  inasmuch  as  it  did  not  apply  directly  to 
the  case  before  the  court,  was  what  lawyers  call  an  obiter  dictum, 
which  is  never  considered  as  having  the  authority  of  a  decision, 
nor  indeed  any  authority  at  all  in  governing  subsequent  decisions. 
At  the  time  when  it  was  uttered,  the  question  of  the  right  of  vis- 
itation, as  now  claimed  by  the  English  government,  had  never,  so 
far  as  we  know,  been  called  in  question,  and  had  certainly  not  been 
argued  before  the  court.  Even  supposing,  therefore,  that  Sir 
William  Scott  had  directly,  and  in  express  terms,  intimated  an 
opinion  adverse  to  the  right  of  visitation,  that  opinion  would 
amount  to  little  or  nothing.  But  has  he  expressed  any  such  opin- 
ion ?  He  says  that,  except  in  particular  cases,  no  nation  can  exer- 
cise a  right  of  visitation  and  search.  But  what  does  he  mean  by 
"  search  "  ?  We  know  no  more  than  our  correspondent.  We  can 
only  infer,  from  the  previous  contentions  upon  the  subject,  and  the 
decisions  which  the  learned  judge  had  been  called  upon  to  pro- 
nounce, that  he  meant*  something  very  different  indeed  from  the 
mere  inspection  of  papers  to  ascertain  the  national  character  of  a 
vessel. 

Undoubtedly,  if  Sir  William  Scott,  after  full  argument  and  con- 
sideration, had  decided  against  the  right  of  visitation  as  now  claimed, 
we  think  that  no  Englishman  would  venture  to  question  the  sound- 
ness of  the  decision  ;  but  to  lay  hold  of  a  doubtful  expression  of 
opinion  on  a  point  not  arising  in  the  cause  before  the  judge,  and 
to  apply  it  to  a  question  which,  we  imagine,  had  never  been 
brought  before  him,  argues  a  conscious  weakness  on  the  part  of 
those  who  support  the  American  claim,  and  sufficiently  accounts 
for  the  disinclination  of  our  correspondent  to  grapple  with  the 
real  question  at  issue,  as  well  as  the  manifest  soreness  which  per- 
vades the  preceding  letter. 

Our  correspondent  has  alleged,  more  than  once,  that  Mr.  Ste- 
venson has  set  up  no  claim  on  behalf  of  the  United  States ;  and, 
perhaps,  in  point  of  form,  that  statement  is  correct ;  but  the  ground 


CAPTURES  IN  THE  AFRICAN  SEAS.  115 

taken  by  him,  in  his  correspondence  with  Lord  Aberdeen,  and 
now  assumed  by  our  correspondent,  amounts  in  substance  to  a 
claim  that  the  American  flag  shall  be  taken  as  proof  of  national- 
ity, and,  by  necessary  inference,  that  every  slaver  or  pirate  that 
chooses  to  carry  an  American  flag  shall  be  free  from  question  or 
examination.  That  any  such  claim  as  this,  as  absurd  in  its  charac- 
ter as  it  would  be  monstrous  in  its  consequences,  can  be  admitted 
by  England,  is,  we  imagine,  wholly  out  of  the  question ;  and  we 
cannot  believe  that  either  the  government  or  the  people  of  the 
United  States  will  persist  in  it. 

In  concluding  this  discussion  with  our  correspondent,  we  can- 
not avoid  saying,  that,  upon  one  point  to  which  his  remarks  have 
been  addressed,  we  were  in  error.  Since  his  first  letter  appeared, 
we  have  taken  an  opportunity  of  reading  Mr.  Stevenson's  letters 
to  Lord  Aberdeen  with  more  care  than  we  had  previously  bestowed 
upon  them ;  and  we  feel  bound  to  admit,  that  that  perusal  has 
removed  the  impression  which  we  previously  entertained,  that  Mr. 
Stevenson  had  avoided  the  real  question  at  issue  between  the  two 
countries.  Being  satisfied  as  to  the  injustice  of  our  former 
remarks  upon  this  point,  we  should  have  felt  it  necessary  to  say 
so,  even  if  there  had  been  no  friendship  subsisting  between  otir 
correspondent  and  Mr.  Stevenson  ',  but  the  knowledge  that  there  is 
such  a  friendship,  renders  the  admission  of  our  error  more  imper- 
atively necessary. 


AMERICAN  MANUFACTURES. 

LONDON,  June  16th,  1843. 

DEAR  SIR  : — You  will  have  heard,  by  the  last  steamer, 
of  the  importation  into  this  country  of  four  hundred 
bales  of  domestics,  for  sale,  on  account  of  one  of  the 
Lowell  manufactories,  and  of  the  sensation  produced  by 
the  arrival  of  such  a  valuable  consignment  at  the  port  of 
London.  The  public  curiosity  was  greatly  excited  to 
know  who  in  America  could  have  ventured  upon  such  a 
novel  experiment:  and  the  question  was  put  to  almost 
every  American,  "  Is  it  decided  that  your  country  is  to 
supply  us  in  future  with  cotton  goods?"  All  this  appeared 
sufficiently  surprising,  as  you  may  well  suppose ;  but  one 
of  the  late  Boston  steamers  has  brought  us  a  letter, 
apparently  the  production  of  a  Lowell  manufacturer,  of 
such  an  extraordinary  character,  I  cannot  forbear  sending 
it  for  publication  in  the  Boston  Post.  It  should  be  read 
by  every  person  in  the  country,  and  be  carefully  pondered 
by  the  next  Congressional  Committee  on  whom  shall 
devolve  the  duty  of  preparing  a  new  tariff  for  the  people 
of  the  United  States.  It  is  only  just  that  our  merchants, 
once  engaged  in  the  foreign  trade,  whose  business  has 
been  destroyed,  and  that  our  ship  owners,  whose  vessels 
are  returning  from  Europe  empty,  should  understand  for 
whose  benefit  the  tariff  of  1842  has  been  imposed.  As 
they  have  listened  so  often  to  the  complaints  of  the 
manufacturers  for  want  of  patronage  and  protection  at 
home,  it  is  but  right,  that  they  should  know  what  their 


AMERICAN  MANUFACTURES.  117 

language  is,  when  they  have  occasion  to  address  their 
correspondents  abroad.  It  will  be  seen  that  the  writer  of 
the  above-mentioned  letter  states,  "that  America  will 
soon  export  largely  of  twist,  as  well  as  of  all  manufac- 
tured fabrics  of  yarn  under  Number  Thirty's ; "  and  that, 
"  where  the  principal  elements,  entering  into  the  cost  of 
an  article,  are  composed  of  raw  cotton  and  power, 
America  will  compete  successfully  with  any  country  in 
the  world."  Mr.  Greg  also  declares  that  "  he  is  prepared 
to  prove  that  the  Americans  can  already  produce  coarse 
domestics,  drills,  and  everything  of  that  kind  at  least  one 
and  one-half  pence  a  pound  cheaper  than  the  English," 
and  that  "  they  have  beaten  them  out  of  the  markets  of 
India  and  China  already ;"  and  this  declaration  the  author 
of  the  letter  confirms.  Now  I  cannot  but  think  that 
some  persons  in  America,  when  they  read  this  flourishing 
account  of  the  condition  of  American  manufacturers,  will 
be  surprised  to  hear  that  the  supposed  writer  of  the  letter 
signed  A.  L.,  is  the  leader  of  that  party  in  the  United 
States  called,  par  excellence, — "the  American  system 
party;"  that  he  has  been  the  chief  promoter  of  every 
tariff  imposing  high  and  onerous  duties  which  has  been 
passed  since  the  year  1828 ;  and  that,  upon  these  very 
Middlesex  cotton  drills,  which  he  informs  Mr.  Greg  he  has 
shipped  to  the  Messrs.  Baring  Brothers  in  London,  and 
for  which  his  price  in  England  is  three  and  a  half  pence 
a  yard,  he  has  a  protective  duty  of  over  seven  cents  a 
yard,  besides  the  other  expenses  of  importation,  making 
the  whole  to  amount  to  one  hundred  and  twenty  per 
cent. ! 

Are  the  people  of  America  aware  that  they  have 
passed  a  tariff  imposing  a  duty  of  one  hundred  per  cent, 
to  protect  certain  corporations  of  manufacturers  at 
Lowell,  who,  when  a  new  tariff  is  about  to  be  passed,  cry 
aloud  for  further  protection  and  higher  duties,  and  make 


118  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

long  and  pathetic  speeches  upon  the  injustice  of  bringing 
the  labor  of  "  the  wretched  operatives  of  England,"  into 
competition  with  that  of  the  young  ladies  who  work  the 
machinery  at  Lowell ;  but  who,  when  they  have  occasion 
to  correspond  with  the  employer  of  those  operatives 
abroad,  give  him  to  understand  that,  so  far  from  needing 
any  protection,  they  are  able  already  "to  compete  in 
cheapness  with  any  nation  in  the  world  ? "  One  is 
astonished  at  the  boldness  of  such  an  avowal,  when  one 
calls  to  mind  the  meetings  assembled  at  Boston  and  else- 
where, only  a  year  since,  to  protest  against  a  reduction  of 
the  duties  to  the  standard  fixed  upon  by  the  Compromise 
Act  of  1832 ;  and  the  pertinacity  with  which  these  same 
manufacturers  continued  their  exertions  until  Congress 
was  induced  to  violate  every  engagement  solemnly 
entered  into  in  1832,  and  to  pass  the  tariff  of  1842  ; 
thereby  almost  destroying  the  whole  foreign  trade,  and  in 
a  single  day  annihilating  the  business  and  occupation  of 
vast  numbers  of  persons.  It  is  common  for  Americans  to 
descant  upon  the  despotism  of  certain  European  govern- 
ments, and  yet,  it  is  believed,  there  is  not  a  dynasty  in 
Europe  which  would  have  ventured  upon  such  a  measure 
as  the  tariff  of  1842.  In  England  certainly  such  a 
measure,  producing  all  at  once  such  a  violent  and  ruinous 
change  in  the  occupations  of  the  people,  would  have 
been  resisted  almost  to  bloodshed,  and  the  ministry 
attempting  it  would  have  been  driven  from  power ;  but, 
somehow  or  other,  the  people  have  a  way,  in  republican, 
free  America,  of  doing  the  most  despotic  acts  without 
shame,  and  with  impunity. 

It  is  consolatory  to  find  that  the  writer  of  the  letter 
signed  A.  L.  believes  "  that  the  world  is  large  enough  to 
consume  all  the  productions  of  labor  under  just  and  wise 
regulations."  It  is  only  to  be  regretted  that  he  has 
omitted  to  state  what  those  just  and  wise  regulations  are. 


AMERICAN  MANUFACTURES.  119 

Perhaps  among  them  may  be  the  following,  which  may 
be  found  in  the  tariff  of  1842,  viz: — Giving  a  protection 
of  one  hundred  per  cent,  to  the  manufacturers  of  cotton, 
who  declare   "they  can  compete  already  in  price  with 
any  country  in  the  world ;"  imposing  a  duty  of  thirty  per 
cent,  upon  silver  plate;  another  of  twenty-five  dollars  a 
ton  upon  iron  costing  from  five  to  six  pounds  sterling; 
another    of   forty   dollars    a    ton    upon    hemp    for    the 
encouragement   of    American    shipping;    taxing    coarse 
fabrics  made  of  cotton  and  worsted,  and  such  as  are  used 
by  the  poor,  seventy  per  cent. ;  or  laying  a  prohibitory 
duty    on   flannels   to   keep    out    the    cheaper   article    of 
Europe.     A  person  who  has  been  instrumental  in  making 
such   regulations  as  these,  may  declare  his  belief  that 
"the  world  is  large  enough  to  consume  all  the  produc- 
tions of  labor,"  but  by  his  acts  he  proves  the  insincerity 
of  his  assertion,  and  evinces  his  desire  that  his  part  of 
the  world,  at  any  rate,  shall  use  only  the  productions  of 
his  own  mills.     It  is  this  grasping  spirit  of  selfishness, 
which  is  so   disgusting   and   reprehensible   in   the    con- 
duct of  American  manufacturers.     The  history  of  their 
acts  would  disclose  a  system  of  deception,  and  excessive 
avarice  unequalled  in  any  other  country.     Who  can  have 
forgotten    the    Harrisburg    convention,    and    the    crisis 
amongst  the  manufacturers  of  New  England,  which  fol- 
lowed the  tariff  of   1828?     It   ruined   the   fortunes  of 
many  of  the  oldest  and  wealthiest  families  in  Boston  and 
the  vicinity,  and  compelled  some  of  the  richest  citizens  to 
mortgage  their  estates  acquired  by  almost  half  a  century 
of  toil  in  the  foreign  trade,  to  borrow  money  to  pay 
instalments  upon  their  manufacturing  stock;  and  although 
we  hear  much  said  at  present  of  the  great  riches  of  the 
few,  who  are  supposed  to  have  made  fortunate  invest- 
ments at  Lowell,  none  appear  disposed  to  take  a  lesson  of 
prudence  from  the  disasters  of  thousands  who  have  been 


120  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

the  victims  of  the  manufacturing  system,  and  are  remem- 
bered no  longer. 

The  export  of  the  four  hundred  bales  of  domestics 
seems  to  have  inspired  the  author  of  the  letter  signed 
A.  L.  with  excellent  spirits,  and,  pursuing  his  pleasant 
visions  of  future  profits,  he  adds,  "The  hard  times,  through 
which  we  have  passed  and  are  passing,  have  taxed  the 
wits  of  our  ingenious  mechanics,  and  what  has  appeared 
to  us  a  great  misfortune  may,  in  the  end,  prove  a  high 
advantage,  by  opening  foreign  markets  for  our  products, 
which  could  not  be  the  case  while  we  were  in  a  state  of 
apparently  the  highest  prosperity."  The  writer  is  sup- 
posed to  refer  to  the  years  1830  to  1837,  during  which 
period  there  was  a  national  bank,  and  an  almost  unlimited 
issue  of  paper  money.  What  a  confession  this,  coming 
too  from  the  leader  of  that  party  by  which  heretofore  it 
was  confidently  asserted  that,  without  a  national  bank  and 
vast  circulation  of  paper,  there  could  be  no  prosperity; 
that  our  exchanges  could  never  be  regulated  in  any  other 
way;  and  that  our  merchants  and  manufacturers  would  be 
all  destroyed!  What  a  tribute  to  the  wisdom  of  General 
Jackson  and  of  the  cabinet  which  supported  him  in  those 
days  of  alarm  and  consternation,  and  who  dared  to  assert 
that  no  national  bank  did,  or  ever  could  regulate  the 
exchange  of  a  great  commercial  country;  that  a  vast 
circulation  of  paper  does  not  constitute  the  wealth  of  a 
nation;  and  that  the  destinies  of  a  free  and  powerful 
country  like  America  could  never  depend  upon  the  will 
of  a  money  king,  lodged  in  his  marble  palace  in  Phil- 
adelphia. 

Few  persons,  however,  in   Boston,  were  prepared  inf 
1836  to  receive  such  heresies  as  these ;  and  fewer  still  of 
our  citizens  can   have  forgotten  the  visit  of  President 
Biddle  to  Boston  in  the  summer  of  1834,  or  the   day 
when,  descending   with   high   and   lofty  step   from   the 


AMERICAN  MANUFACTURES. 

granite  temple  near  the  head  of  State  Street,  he  was 
conducted  in  triumph  upon  the  Boston  Exchange  to  see 
his  vassals,  resting  upon  the  arms  of  two  eminent  mer- 
chants and  manufacturers  as  his  dexter  and  sinister 
supports.  Some  time  after,  in  1838,  we  were  informed 
by  this  eminent  financier  that,  without  the  aid  of  his 
bank  and  "  its  penitentiary  notes,"  "  the  cotton  and  other 
products  of  America  could  not  be  wafted  down  the  Mis- 
sissippi to  the  Atlantic ;"  but"  what  a  striking  falsification 
of  this  doctrine  have  we  witnessed  the  present  year,  in 
the  immense  production  of  cotton  and  other  articles  in 
the  south  and  west,  and  in  their  unprecedentedly  early 
shipments  at  the  seaports!  Truly  it  is  high  time  that  the 
leader  of  the  tariff  party,  and  the  party  itself,  should 
begin  to  have  a  doubt  whether,  from  1830  to  1836,  we 
were  "  in  a  state  of  the  highest  prosperity."  As  the 
season  will  soon  arrive  when  Congress  will  be  called  upon 
to  pass  a  new  tariff,  (for  the  present  one  has  been  found 
not  only  unjust,  but  highly  unproductive  also,)  the  citizens 
of  Boston  engaged  in  the  foreign  trade,  and  all  who  are 
in  favor  of  just  and  equitable  duties,  and  are  opposed  to 
such  a  bill  of  abominations  as  the  tariff  of  1842,  should 
be  upon  the  alert,  and  take  active  measures  to  enlighten 
the  minds  of  the  legislature  upon  the  important  duty 
which  is  so  soon  to  devolve  upon  them ;  and  among  other 
documents  which  they  may  lay  before  them,  let  them  not 

forget  the  letter  signed  A L ,  to  R.  H.  Greg,  of 

Manchester. 

I  am,  dear  sir,  very  respectfully, 

Your  friend, 

M. 

To  CHARLES  Gr.  GREENE,  Esq. 

16 


WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

NORCLIFFE,  May  31st,  1843. 

To  the  Editor  of  the  Manchester  Guardian  : 

SIR, — In  the  early  part  of  the  present  month,  four  hundred 
bales  of  American  cotton  manufactures,  consigned  to  Messrs. 
Baring  Brothers,  of  London,  arrived  by  the  ship  Niagara. 

An  event  so  remarkable  in  itself  would  possibly  have  passed 
unheard  of  or  unheeded,  but  for  the  fortunate  accident,  as  I  esteem 
it,  of  the  seizure  of  the  said  bales  at  the  custom  house,  under  some 
misapprehension  as  to  the  origin  or  destination  of  their  contents ; 
the  cause  of  which,  I  believe,  you  correctly  suggested  at  the  time 
the  seizure  took  place. 

Public  attention  having  now  been  directed  to  the  circumstance 
by  accident,  it  may  not  be  without  its  use.  I  said,  long  ago,  that 
nothing  short  of  the  sale  of  foreign  goods  on  the  Manchester 
Exchange  would  make  our  manufacturers  believe  that  other  nations 
could  compete  with  us  even  in  their  own  markets,  and  I  trust  the 
arrival  of  four  hundred  bales  of  American  domestics  will  not  be 
wholly  without  its  effect  in  awakening  them  to  a  sense  of  the 
precarious  position  they  at  present  occupy. 

When  I  look  at  the  probable  fate  of  our  cotton  manufactures, 
the  raw  material  brought  from  the  country  of  our  manufacturing 
rivals,  and  charged  with  no  trifling  duty  before  being  entered  for 
consumption,  our  exchanges  crippled  by  corn  laws,  and  our 
machinery  now  freely  exported,  I  confess  I  am  not  without  the 
darkest  apprehensions.  Under  these  discouraging  circumstances, 
and  I  fear  overwhelming  difficulties,  instead  of  combining  to 
procure  some  means  of  escape,  we  are  disputing  amongst  ourselves 
— workmen,  masters,  and  the  legislature — about  "  ten  hours' 
bills,"  multiplying  restrictions  of  every  kind,  and  actually  pro- 
posing to  limit  the  energies  of  our  steam  engines  and  water-wheels, 
to  the  extent  of  twenty  per  cent.  When  Lord  Ashley's  motion 
comes  on,  for  a  restriction  of  the  hours  of  labor  in  factories  to  ten, 
or,  including  the  short  time  on  Saturday,  to  nine  and  a  half  hours 
daily,  surely  this  fact,  of  American  manufactures  being  now 
imported  for  sale  into  this  country,  will  save  us  from  the  folly  of 
such  legislation. 

Being  in  London  last  week,  I  went  to  Messrs.  Barings,  to  see 


AMERICAN  MANUFACTURES.  123 

the  goods  in  question,  and  inquire  into  the  circumstances  of  their 
importation. 

I  found  them  to  consist  of  only  one  kind  of  goods,  viz. :  cotton 
drills,  a  stout,  twilled  nankeen,  used  for  summer  trousers.  This 
article  the  house  in  which  I  was  concerned  used  to  manufacture 
largely  for  export ;  but  our  correspondents  diminished  their  orders 
until  at  last  they  stated  they  could  buy  the  article  in  America  ten 
per  cent,  cheaper  than  we  could  afford  to  send  them  from  here. 
These  articles,  and  the  common  plain  domestics,  have  long  since 
replaced  the  English  article  in  the  markets  of  South  America  and 
Canton,  and  they  are  now,  it  seems,  come  to  supply  our  own. 
They  are  on  sale,  either  for  the  home  or  any  foreign  market ;  and, 
as  Messrs.  Baring  remarked,  the  ten  per  cent,  protection  duty  on 
such  articles,  is  only  equal  to  the  duty  of  five-sixteenths  of  a  penny 
per  pound,  paid  by  the  English  manufacturer  on  the  raw  material 
— consequently  the  protection  under  the  tariff  is  worse  than  merely 
nominal,  being  also  delusive. 

The  following  letter,  received  from  the  shipper  of  the  four 
hundred  bales  in  question,  an  entire  stranger  to  me,  contains  so 
much  interesting  matter,  you  will  perhaps  give  it  insertion  in  the 
Guardian  ;  and  also,  if  not  trespassing  too  much  upon  your  limits, 
the  paragraph  in  the  American  newspaper,  to  which  the  writer 
alludes. 

The  information  contained  in  them  respecting  the  American 
manufactures,  and  in  the  letter  to  Messrs.  Jones,  Gibson  &  Ord, 
in  the  Guardian  of  this  morning,  stating  the  exports  from  the 
United  States  to  China  alone,  during  the  present  season,  to  amount 
already  to  two  hundred  and  fifty  thousand  pounds  of  twist,  and 
four  hundred  and  twenty  thousand  pieces  of  cotton  cloth,  must 
surely  tend  to  awaken  from  their  apathy  both  our  manufacturers 
and  the  government. 

I  am  your  obedient  servant, 

ROBERT  HYDE  GREGC 


124  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

[Copy.] 

BOSTON,  UNITED  STATES,  April  29,  1843. 
ROBERT  HYDE  GREG,  Esq. 

DEAR  SIR, — Although  a  stranger,  I  am  induced  to  write  to  you, 
in  consequence  of  having  read  a  speech  of  yours,  delivered  in 
Manchester,  December,  1841,  and  which  was  published  in  the 
Manchester  Guardian.  That  part  of  it .  relating  to  the  cotton 
manufacture  of  this  country  has  proved  prophetic. 

The  views  you  then  presented  were  so  much  in  accordance  with 
my  own,  and  so  practical  in  their  character,  that  I  laid  the  speech 
aside  for  future  reference. 

Early  in  the  present  month  I  shipped  to  the  address  of  Baring 
Brothers,  of  London,  a  quantity  of  cotton  drills,  which  forcibly 
brought  to  my  mind  the  declarations  in  your  speech. 

I  have,  therefore,  in  justice  to  you,  as  well  as  to  record  the  fact 
as  a  matter  of  history,  published  an  extract  from  your  speech, 
which  will  be  found  in  the  Boston  Advertiser,  herewith  enclosed. 

I  am  quite  satisfied  we  shall  soon  become  extensive  exporters  of 
twist,  as  well  as  of  all  manufactured  fabrics  of  yarn  under 
Number  Thirties. 

The  quantity  of  cotton  shirtings,  sheetings,  and  drills,  now 
exporting  from  this  country,  is  much  larger  than  at  any  former 
period ;  the  prices  have  been  materially  reduced  by  the  reduction 
in  the  prices  of  cotton  and  labor. 

I  am  fully  impressed  with  the  idea  that,  where  the  principal 
elements  entering  into  the  cost  of  an  article  are  composed  of  raw 
cotton  and  power,  we  shall  compete  successfully  with  any  country 
in  the  world.  You  have,  however,  many  advantages  over  us  at 
present ;  possessing  cheaper  labor  and  capital,  and  more  knowledge 
of  the  arts  and  sciences.  We  have  compensation  in  part  in  the 
abundance  of  water  power,  and  a  soil  and  climate  adapted  to  the 
cultivation  of  cotton,  to  an  extent  which  can  hardly  be  estimated. 
Those  are  natural  advantages  of  which  we  cannot  be  deprived. 
Time  is  the  only  panacea  for  our  wants  in  other  respects. 

In  all  the  finer  fabrics  we  shall  continue  to  be  large  customers 
to  Great  Britain  ;  and  I  doubt  not,  from  this  time  it  will  be  found 
that  the  exports  from  Great  Britain  to  this  country  will  increase. 


AMERICAN  MANUFACTURES. 

Trade  appears  to  be  improving,  and  will,  by  the  autumn,  again 
flow  in  its  natural  and  accustomed  channels  in  this  country. 

We  are  literally  burdened  with  agricultural  products.  The 
prices  are  very  low,  which  necessarily  reduces  the  value  of  labor, 
and  this  reduction  has  caused  many  articles  to  be  exported  the  past 
year  which  have  never  before  been  sent  out  of  the  country. 

I  believe  the  world  is  large  enough  to  consume  all  the  products 
of  labor,  under  just  and  wise  regulations ;  and  it  is  to  be  hoped 
that  we  in  this  country  may,  in  a  small,  comparative  degree,  enjoy 
the  advantages  of  exporting  our  coarse  manufactures  to  those 
countries  whose  produce  we  require  for  the  consumption  of  this 
growing  Republic. 

I  shall  be  happy  to  furnish  you  with  samples  of  our  manufac- 
tures, and  compare  the  cost  of  production  with  those  of  England. 
Meantime,  pray  excuse  the  freedom  I  have  thus  taken  in  addressing 
you,  etc.,  etc.  Yours  respectfully,  etc., 


[For  the  Boston  Daily  Advertiser  and  Patriot.] 

MR.  HALE  : — I  send  for  publication  in  your  paper  an  extract  from 
the  Speech  of  Robert  H.  Greg,  Esq.,  which  appeared  in  the  Man- 
chester (Eng.)  Guardian  of  the  18th  December,  1841.  Mr.  Greg 
presided  at  the  great  meeting  of  cotton  manufacturers  and  others 
interested,  held  at  Manchester  on  the  tenth  of  the  same  month, 
and  is  himself  one  of  the  largest  cotton  spinners  in  the  world. 
Improbable  of  accomplishment  as  the  prediction  contained  in  the 
following  extract  seemed  at  the  time  it  was  spoken,  it  has  already 
been  fulfilled.  Last  week,  I  noticed  that  a  vessel  cleared  at  this 
port  for  London,  with  four  hundred  bales  of  drillings  on  board, 
which  are  believed  to  be  the  first  American  cotton  fabrics  sent  to 
Great  Britain. 

All  the  statements  made  by  Mr.  Greg  are  believed  to  be  cor- 
rect. The  self-acting  mule  to  which  he  refers  has  been  introduced, 
and  will  doubtless  be  adopted  throughout  the  country,  particularly 
in  the  manufacture  of  fine  goods.  In  every  description  of  cotton 
and  woollen  goods,  since  December,  1841,  there  have  been  great 
reductions  in  the  cost  of  manufacturing,  and  I  have  no  doubt  there 


126  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

will  be  still  greater.  Further  improvements  will  be  made  in  the 
preparation,  as  well  as  in  the  spinning  and  weaving  of  cotton, 
which  will  materially  reduce  the  cost  of  production.  The  hard 
times,  through  which  we  have  passed  and  are  passing,  have  taxed  the 
wits  of  our  ingenious  mechanics,  and  what  has  appeared  to  us  a  great 
misfortune  may,  in  the  end,  prove  of  high  advantage  by  opening 
foreign  markets  for  our  products,  which  could  not  be  the  case 
while  we  were  in  a  state  of  apparently  the  highest  prosperity. 

"  There  are,  in  the  United  States,  nine  hundred  cotton  mills  : 
a  capital  of  ten  million  pounds  sterling  (fifty  million  dollars)  is 
invested  in  the  cotton  manufacture  -,  they  have  nearly  forty  thou- 
sand looms,  and  produce  two  hundred  and  fifty  millions  of  yards 
in  a  year.  And  I  can  state,  also,  on  the  very  best  authority,  that 
the  Lowell  mills,  which  consume  sixty  thousand  bales  (out  of  three 
hundred  thousand,  the  total  consumption)  produce  a  greater  quan- 
tity of  yarn  and  cloth,  by  each  spindle  and  each  loom,  in  a  given 
time,  than  is  produced  by  any  other  mills  in  the  world.  They 
turn  off  fifty  yards  a  day  in  all  their  looms  at  Lowell,  and  we  all 
know  that  no  English  mills  produce  any  thing  like  that  quantity. 
To  be  sure,  they  work  rather  longer  hours  than  we  do  here.  They 
work  at  Lowell  seventy-three  hours  and  a  half  a  week  ;  in  other 
mills  in  America,  seventy -five  hours  and  a  half.  I  got  a  return 
only  last  week  from  a  friend  of  mine  who  has  been  at  Lowell,  of 
the  work  performed  in  the  last  new  mills  which  have  been  built 
there.  We  are  familiar  with  the  coarse  drills,  that  we  all  used  to 
make  immense  quantities  of  at  one  time,  to  supply  pantaloon  stuffs 
for  the  India  and  China  markets,  and  now  they  are  used  all  over 
America ;  and  which,  not  very  many  years  ago,  the  house  in  which 
I  am  concerned  used  to  make  and  ship  to  a  great  extent.  The 
new  mills  at  Lowell  produce  those  at  three  and  a  half  pence  per 
pound  from  the  cotton,  six  cents  and  three  quarters,  (in  the  other 
mills,  seven  cents,)  which,  with  the  cotton  six  pence,  brings  the 
cost  to  nine  and  a  half  pence  per  pound  for  those  articles.  As  to 
the  advantage  they  have  over  us,  I  do  not  exaggerate  when  I  state 
it  at  upwards  of  one  penny  per  pound  in  cotton  alone  ;  the  freight 
to  the  American  mills  being  about  half  the  average  freight  to  Eng- 
land, and  there  is  our  duty  and  other  expenses.  In  the  concern 


AMERICAN  MANUFACTURES.  127 

in  which  I  am  interested,  the  extra  tax  paid,  owing  to  the  high 
price  of  flour,  amounts  to  a  tax  of  one  thousand  pounds  a  year 
upon  our  mills,  as  compared  with  their  mills  in  America.  (Hear.) 
Then  their  water  power  costs,  at  the  highest  rate,  three  pounds 
ten  shillings  per  horse  power  ;  whilst  the  lowest  rate  in  this  country 
is  twelve  pounds  per  horse  power.  I  have  not  the  smallest  doubt, 
indeed,  I  am  prepared  to  prove,  that  they  can  produce  coarse 
domestics,  drills,  and  every  thing  of  that  kind,  at  least  one  penny 
and  a  half  cheaper  than  we  can.  t  (Hear.)  They  have  beaten  us 
out  of  the  India  and  Chinese  markets  ;  of  course,  they  produce 
for  all  their  own  consumption,  and,  after  a  while,  I  have  little 
doubt  that  we  shall  have  them  introduced  very  largely  here. 
(Hear,  hear.) 

"  The  last  thing  they  will  do  is  to  attack  the  enemy  in  his  own 
camp ;  but  I  am  quite  sure  we  shall  see  it  by-and-by ;  of  that,  I 
think  there  cannot  be  a  doubt.  The  rate  of  wages  is  considerably 
higher  there ;  but  the  great  obstacle  to  the  rapid  spread  of  produc- 
tion in  the  American  mills,  is  the  difficulty  of  getting  mule 
spinners.  When  they  get  self-acting  mules,  that  difficulty  van- 
ishes. We  must  make  up  our  minds  to  prepare  for  the  loss  of 
these  markets  ;  it  is  of  no  use  to  disguise  the  fact ;  it  is  of  no  use 
any  of  us  saying,  '  I  can  hold  out  as  long  as  my  neighbor ;  there 
is  nothing  for  it  but  to  push  the  weaker  ones  to  the  wall.'  That 
is  an  idle  and  selfish  way  of  expression,  (to  say  no  worse  of  it,) 
which  I  regret  too  many  of  us  have  been  indulging  in.  (Hear.) 
Let  us  take  care  that  the  strong  be  not  also  pushed  to  the  wall ; 
because  we  may  depend  upon  it,  in  production,  there  are  stronger 
countries  than  we  are ;  and  if  we  are,  as  a  country,  the  weaker 
one,  we  shall  all  go  to  the  wall  together." 


FREE   TRADE   AND    PROTECTION. 

[From  the  Richmond  Whig.] 
RESOURCES   OF   VIRGINIA.— THE  REVENUE   QUESTION. 

WE  invite  the  attention  of  our  readers  to  the  interesting  commu- 
nication of  a  distinguished  citizen,  in  our  columns  to-day.  It  is 
a  subject  which  comes  home  to  the  "  business  and  bosoms  "  of  us 
all — the  interests  and  improvements  of  our  own  State.  Mr.  Law- 
rence, during  his  service  in  Congress,  was  most  advantageously 
known  to  the  whole  Union  by  the  clear-sighted  sagacity  and  strong 
practical  sense,  which  always  distinguished  his  views  of  public 
measures.  He  is  eminently  national  in  his  sentiments  and  feelings, 
and  has  ever  shown  himself  a  true  friend  of  the  South.  Sugges- 
tions from  so  liberal  and  enlightened  a  source,  naturally  commend 
themselves  to  the  cordial  and  respectful  attention  of  Virginians. 
We  shall  have  great  pleasure  in  laying  before  our  readers  the 
additional  communication  he  gives  us  reason  to  expect. 

BOSTON,  January  7,  1846. 

MY  DEAR  SIR, — When  you  were  with  us  the  last  summer,  I 
more  than  half  promised  to  make  you  a  short  visit  in  February, 
and  I  have  not  yet  given  up,  entirely,  the  long  anticipated 
pleasure  of  doing  so. 

I  have  not  forgotten  our  conversation  on  the  condition  of  our 
country  generally,  and  more  particularly  the  strong  desire  mani- 
fested by  you,  to  improve  the  condition  of  the  people  of  your  own 
State.  I  have  always  entertained  feelings  of  high  regard  for  the 
"  Ancient  Dominion,"  arising,  probably,  from  the  intimate  revolu- 
tionary associations  between  her  and  our  "  Old  Bay  State,"  as  well 
as  from  my  having  looked  upon  her  as  the  mother  of  many  of  the 
greatest  statesmen,  and  purest  patriots,  which  our  country  has 
produced. 


WANTS  OF  VIRGINIA.  129 

I  am  not  surprised  that  you,  of  Virginia,  should  desire  to  do 
something  by  which  the  matchless  natural  resources  of  your  native 
State  should  be  developed.  1  have  thought  that  the  State  of 
Virginia,  with  its  temperate  climate,  variety  and  excellence  of  soil, 
exhaustless  water  power,  and  exuberant  mineral  wealth,  contains 
within  herself  more  that  is  valuable  for  the  uses  of  mankind,  in 
these  modern  days,  than  any  other  State  in  our  Union. 

I  need  not  say  to  you,  that  these  gifts  of  Providence  are  of  little 
consequence  to  your  people,  or  to  our  common  country,  unless 
developed  and  improved,  for  the  purposes  for  which  they  were 
intended.  When  the  constitution  of  the  United  States  was  adopted, 
Virginia  contained  double  the  population  of  New  York,  and  now, 
New  York  contains  double  the  number  of  people  in  Virginia.  I 
do  not  propose  to  inquire  into  the  causes  that  have  produced  such 
a  mighty  change  in  the  relative  numerical  condition  of  these  two 
states.  I  do  propose,  however,  to  state  to  you  some  of  the  reasons 
why  you  should  now  set  about  doing  something,  to  bring  back  that 
prosperity,  which  many  of  your  people  believe  is  forever  lost. 

The  truth  is,  and  not  to  be  denied,  that  Nature  has  been  profuse 
in  her  gifts,  in  behalf  of  your  people,  and  you  have  done  but  little 
for  yourselves.  The  settlement  and  development  of  the  resources 
of  the  western  country  have  brought  into  existence  an  active  and 
effectual  competition  with  your  people  in  the  great  staples  of  your 
agricultural  products,  viz.,  wheat,  Indian  corn,  and  tobacco.  Mary- 
land and  North  Carolina,  like  yourselves,  are  essentially  affected 
by  competition  from  the  same  quarter  ;  from  Ohio,  Kentucky,  Indi- 
ana, Illinois,  Missouri,  Michigan,  Wisconsin  and  Iowa.  The  great 
West  is  now  supplying  largely  the  New  England,  and  other 
States,  which  are  consumers  of  these  agricultural  staples,  in  quan- 
tity and  value  to  a  greater  extent  than  all  the  foreign  world  besides. 
The  internal  improvements  of  the  country  already  finished,  have 
brought  Boston,  by  steam,  within  the  distance  of  four  days'  travel 
of  Cincinnati,  by  way  of  Buffalo ;  and  a  contemplated  railroad 
from  Burlington,  Vermont,  to  Ogdensburg,  New  York,  will  bring 
us  practically  yet  nearer  to  those  fertile  regions  of  the  west.  The 
expense  of  transportation  is  essentially  reduced  wherever  railroads 
or  canals  have  been  constructed ;  and  even  the  Mississippi  herself 

17 


130  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

bears  down  upon  her  bosom  the  products  of  the  west,  at  less  than 
half  the  freight  that  was  charged  a  few  years  ago. 

Thirty  years  since,  a  few  small  schooners  were  sufficient  to  carry 
on  the  commerce  between  this  city  and  New  Orleans  ;  now,  within 
the  last  year,  we  have  had  one  hundred  and  sixty-five  arrivals  from 
New  Orleans  at  this  port,  and  many  of  the  vessels  are  of  the  largest 
class  ;  ships  from  five  hundred  to  seven  hundred  tons  burden. 
They  have  brought  us  tobacco,  Indian  corn,  flour,  cotton,  beef,  pork, 
lard,  lead,  etc.,  amounting  in  the  aggregate  to  many  millions  of 
dollars.  Of  the  first  three  of  these  articles,  which  now  come  to 
us  in  such  quantities  from  New  Orleans,  our  importations  in  former 
times  were  almost  exclusively  from  Virginia,  North  Carolina,  and 
Maryland.  Can  you  expect  to  compete,  successfully,  with  the 
western  regions  of  our  country,  where,  without  much  labor,  the 
soil  produces  double,  and  sometimes  even  more,  to  the  acre  than 
the  average  crops  of  the  last  mentioned  states  ?  This  competition 
will  increase,  and  it  appears  to  me  that  the  remedy  for  its  inaus- 
picious effects  upon  your  welfare,  is  to  create  a  market  at  home  for 
your  surplus  agricultural  products,  by  establishing  such  manufac- 
tures as  may  be  adapted  to  the  peculiar  condition  of  your  labor. 
There  are  two  classes  of  labor,  intelligent  and  unintelligent ;  the 
former  is  that  kind  of  labor  which  requires  a  considerable  amount 
of  mental  culture,  with  active  physical  power.  This  combination 
is  capable  of  applying  science  to  art,  and  of  producing  results  that 
are  difficult,  and  oftentimes  complicated.  The  latter  description  of 
labor  is  of  that  character  which  depends  principally  on  physical 
strength  ;  this  quality  of  labor  you  have  in  abundance  ;  and  I  hope 
you  are  not  without  a  tolerable  supply  of  the  higher  class.  You 
may,  without  doubt,  commence  the  manufacture  of  almost  every 
description  of  articles,  requiring  but  little  skill,  and  prosecute  the 
work  with  success.  Manufactures  of  such  articles  as  iron,  hemp, 
wool,  cotton,  leather,  etc.,  wrought  into  the  coarser  and  more 
common  articles,  would  succeed. 

You  will  find,  very  soon  after  a  regular  system  of  the  division 
of  labor  shall  have  been  introduced,  that  a  desire  for  knowledge 
will  be  created ;  more  education,  more  intellectual  cultivation,  will 
be  desired  by  those  engaged  in  the  mechanical  departments,  and, 


WANTS  OF  VIRGINIA.  131 

with  this  eagerness  for  knowledge,  will  follow  skill  and  cleverness 
in  the  use  of  tools,  and  then  will  follow  the  inventive  power,  for 
which  our  people  have  become  so  distinguished  in  the  estimation 
of  the  world. 

You  cannot  do  anything  in  Virginia,  that  will  so  completely 
promote  the  introduction  of  railroads,  as  the  placing  of  manufac- 
turing establishments  on  your  beautiful  water-falls.  The  water- 
power  on  the  James  river,  at  Richmond,  is  unrivalled ;  and  it 
seems  a  great  waste  of  natural  wealth,  to  permit  it  to  run  into  the 
sea,  having  hardly  touched  a  water-wheel.  If  the  prominent  men 
of  Virginia,  of  both  political  parties,  will  give  up  their  party  war- 
fare, and  resolve  themselves  into  a  "  Committee  of  the  Whole,  on 
the  Commonwealth,  to  improve  the  state  of  Agriculture,"  by  mak- 
ing two  blades  of  grass  grow,  where  there  is  now  but  one,  will 
establish  manufactures,  and  carry  on  a  well-adjusted  system  of 
internal  improvements,  they  will  then  have  done  something  that 
will  be  substantial,  abiding, — which  will  stand  as  memorials  of  their 
patriotic  devotion  to  the  interest  of  the  people,  through  all  time. 
Let  your  common  school  system  go  hand  in  hand  with  the  employ- 
ment of  your  people,  you  may  be  quite  certain  that  the  adoption 
of  these  systems  at  once,  will  aid  each  other. 

You  cannot,  I  should  suppose,  expect  to  develop  your  resources, 
without  a  general  system  of  popular  education  ;  it  is  the  lever  to 
all  permanent  improvement.  It  appears  to  me  essential  to  the 
preservation  of  our  republican  institutions,  that  the  people  of  this 
country  should  be  educated,  and  that  all  intellectual  culture  should 
be  founded  upon  our  holy  religion  :  the  pure  precepts  of  the 
gospel  are  the  only  safe  source  from  which  we  can  freely  draw 
our  morality.  It  is  essential  that  we  should  have  an  educated 
population ;  inasmuch  as  every  man  can  exercise  the  right  of 
suffrage :  the  elective  franchise  in  the  hands  of  an  ignorant  and 
debased  population,  would  very  soon  place  our  country  in  a  state 
of  anarchy.  We  should  strive  to  elevate  the  laboring,  and  less 
favored  classes.  In  Europe,  the  great  body  of  the  people  have 
nothing  to  do  with  the  election  of  their  rulers ;  even  in  England, 
free  as  she  is,  compared  with  many  of  the  continental  states,  the 
mass  of  the  people  do  not  exercise  the  elective  franchise.  This  is  a 
point  of  primary  importance ;  and  your  people  may  rest  assured, 


WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

that  taxes  for  education,  even  as  a  matter  of  pecuniary  gain,  would 
greatly  enhance  the  value  of  their  property.  I  am,  therefore,  clear 
in  my  convictions,  not  only  of  the  duty,  but  the  expediency  of 
introducing  manufactures  extensively  into  your  state,  with  an  expan- 
sive system  of  popular  education,  and  from  these  movements,  will 
soon  be  seen  the  happiest  results,  in  a  healthful  prosperity,  and  a 
striking  improvement  in  the  condition  of  the  people. 

Just  for  a  moment  imagine  the  whole  supernumerary  population 
of  Virginia,  employed  at  a  rate  of  wages,  such  as  are  paid  in  the 
northern  and  eastern  states ;  what,  think  you,  would  be  the  effect  ? 
I  have  not  a  doubt  that  the  value  of  land  would  increase  within  five 
miles  around  each  manufacturing  village,  equal  to  the  cost  of  all 
the  machinery  in  it.  The  sphere  of  labor  must  be  enlarged ;  diver- 
sified, if  you  would  bring  out  the  energies  of  your  people.  I  yet 
hope  to  see  Virginia  take  that  place,  among  the  old  Thirteen,  that 
seemed  by  Providence  to  be  assigned  to  her.  It  can  only  be  achieved 
by  energy  and  perseverance,  on  the  part  of  those  who  have  the 
destinies  of  their  fellow  citizens  in  keeping.  Let  the  law-makers, 
and  those  who  administer  them,  not  only  speak  out,  but  act,  give 
an  impetus  to  labor ;  let  it  be  respectable  for  every  man  to  have  a 
vocation,  and  to  follow  it.  If  not  for  his  own  pecuniary  profit,  let 
him  labor  for  character,  which  he  is  certain  to  obtain,  if  his  labors 
benefit  others.  I  intended  to  make  some  remarks  on  the  recom- 
mendation of  the  President  in  his  annual  message,  and  the  report 
of  the  honorable  secretary  of  the  treasury,  to  change  our  whole 
revenue  system.  The  plan  proposed,  if  carried  out,  has  an  import- 
ant bearing  on  the  subject  of  this  letter,  which  is,  however,  already 
sufficiently  long.  Reserving,  therefore,  my  remarks  upon  the  last 
mentioned  topics,  for  another  communication, 
I  remain,  very  faithfully, 

Your  friend  and  obt.  servant, 

ABBOTT    LAWRENCE, 
To  the  Hon.  W.  0.  RIVES, 

Castle  Hill,  Albemarle  County,  Virginia. 


TARIFF  OF  1846.  133 

WE  cheerfully  give  up  our  own  space  to-day,  to  a  second  letter 
from  the  Hon.  Abbott  Lawrence,  and  feel  sure  that  our  readers 
will  thank  us  for  the  substitution.  We  have  taken  but  a  mere 
glance  at  this  document,  but  think  we  may  safely  say,  it  is  a  pow- 
erful and  impressive  paper — throwing  much  light  upon  subjects  of 
particular  interest  to  Virginia,  and  indeed  to  the  whole  country : 

BOSTON,  January  16th,  1846. 

MY  DEAR  SIR  :  I  stated,  in  my  letter  of  the  seventh,  that  I 
should  write  to  you  again,  upon  the  subject  of  the  entire  change 
proposed  by  the  President  of  the  United  States,  and  the  Secretary 
of  the  Treasury,  in  our  Eevenue  Laws.  It  is  no  other  than  the 
adoption  of  ad  valorem  for  specific  duties,  and  a  reduction  of  the 
whole  to  twenty  per  cent.  ;  this  being  the  maximum  at  which  the 
Secretary  supposes  the  largest  revenue  can  be  obtained.  I  shall 
not  now  discuss  the  rates  of  duty  that  will  produce  the  greatest 
amount  of  revenue.  I  will  leave  the  Secretary  to  settle  that  ques- 
tion ;  but  shall  endeavor  so  show  what  the  eifects  will  be  upon 
the  country  if  his  recommendation  should  be  adopted  by  Con- 
gress. I  deem  the  scheme  proposed  to  Congress,  in  the  main,  a 
currency  question,  and  one,  if  carried  out,  that  will  reach,  in  its 
operation,  the  occupation  and  business  of  every  man  in  the  United 
States. 

I  believe  the  most  economical  member  of  Congress  will  agree 
that  thirty  millions  of  dollars  will  be  required,  annually,  to  carry 
on  this  government,  for  the  next  five  years,  and  that  this  estimate 
does  not  include  large  sums  that  may  be  wanted  to  settle  our 
affairs  with  Mexico,  Texas,  etc. ;  and  that  this  sum  is  to  be  raised 
from  foreign  importations,  and  the  public  lands.  The  goods,  sub- 
ject to  duty,  imported  the  last  year,  amounted,  in  round  numbers, 
to  ninety  millions  of  dollars,  and  the  goods  free  of  duty  to  about 
twenty-five  millions.  I  have  not  the  returns  at  hand,  and  may  not 
be  exactly  correct  as  to  amounts  ;  but  they  are  near  enough  to 
illustrate  my  arguments :  the  former  paid  an  average  duty  of  about 
thirty-two  per  cent.,  creating  a  revenue,  say  of  twenty-eight  mil- 
lions. If  the  revenue  derived  from  an  importation  of  ninety  mil- 
lions, gave  twenty- eight  millions  of  dollars,  what  amount  must  be 
imported,  to  produce  the  same  sum  at  twenty  per  cent,  ad  valorem  ? 


134  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

The  answer  is,  one  hundred  and  forty  millions  ;  add  to  this,  the 
free  goods,  about  twenty-five  millions,  and  we  have  an  importation 
of  one  hundred  and  sixty -five  millions  of  dollars.  Our  exports  have 
not  exceeded,  nor  are  they  likely  at  present  to  increase  above  one 
hundred  and  twenty  millions :  we  then  have  a  deficit  of  forty-five 
millions  to  provide  for ;  and  how  is  this  balance  to  be  paid  ? 
State  stocks  are  no  longer  current  in  Europe.  Even  the  stocks  of 
the  United  States  cannot  be  negotiated  on  favorable  terms. 

We,  who  are  merchants,  can  answer  this  question,  having  often 
been  obliged  to  make  our  remittances  in  coin,  when  our  imports 
have  exceeded  our  exports. 

If  we  are  obliged  to  import  one  hundred  and  forty  millions  of 
goods  subject  to  duty,  to  meet  the  wants  of  the  government,  it  is 
quite  certain  that  the  coin  must  be  exported  to  meet  the  deficiency. 
If  the  importations  fall  short  of  one  hundred  and  forty  millions,  we 
then  have  an  empty  treasury.  In  one  case,  the  country  will  be 
made  bankrupt,  to  fill  the  treasury ;  and,  in  the  other,  the  treas- 
ury will  be  bankrupt,  and  resort  to  Congress  for  treasury  notes  and 
loans.  It  may  be  said,  that  our  exports  will  increase  with  our 
imports.  This  supposition  I  think  fallacious.  The  policy  of  Great 
Britain,  and  that  of  all  Europe  has  been,  and  is  likely  to  continue, 
to  protect  every  thing  produced  either  at  home,  or  in  their  col- 
onies. In  Great  Britain,  the  article  of  cotton  is  now  admitted  free, 
the  duty  having  been  repealed  the  very  last  year.  This  was  owing 
to  repeated  representations  of  the  Manchester  spinners  to  Parlia- 
ment as  to  the  necessity  of  such  a  measure  in  consequence  of  the 
competition  from  foreign  countries  in  the  coarse  fabrics  manufac- 
tured from  cotton  produced  in,  and  shipped  from,  the  United 
States.  The  argument  presented  in  the  house  of  commons  was, 
that  the  Americans  had  taken  possession  of  every  market,  where 
they  were  admitted  on  the  same  terms,  with  their  coarse  goods. 
This  is  a  true  representation,  and  I  apprehend  the  repeal  of  the 
duty  on  cotton  will  not  enable  the  British  manufacturer  to  again 
obtain  possession  of  those  markets,  for  the  heavy  descriptions  of 
cotton  fabrics. 

What  other  article  of  importance  does  the  government  of  Great 
Britain  admit  free  of  duty  ?  I  know  of  none.  Cotton  is  admitted 
free  of  duty  from  necessity.  How  is  it  with  tobacco  ?  A  duty  is 


TARIFF  OF  1846.  135 

paid  of  twelve  hundred  per  cent.  Wheat  is  prohibited  by  the 
"  sliding  scale,"  and,  in  case  of  a  total  repeal  of  the  corn  laws,  very 
little  wheat  would  be  shipped  from  this  country,  inasmuch  as  it  can 
be  laid  down,  in  ordinary  years  of  harvest,  much  cheaper  from  the 
Baltic.  Beef  and  pork  are  burdened  with  a  heavy  duty.  The 
duty  and  charges  on  a  barrel  of  American  pork  laid  down  in  Liv- 
erpool, with  the  commission  for  sales,  amount  to  five  dollars  and 
seventy -five  cents  ;  so  that  the  quantity  of  this  article  shipped  to 
England  must  be  inconsiderable/  unless  the  prices  here  should  be 
so  low  as  to  be  ruinous  to  the  farmer. 

I  cannot  find,  in  the  catalogue  of  our  strictly  agricultural  prod- 
ucts, a  single  article  that  is  not  burdened  with  a  high  duty,  in 
England,  or  other  parts  of  Europe,  if  it  comes  in  competition  with 
their  own  products  ;  nor  can  I  discover  that  there  is  a  disposition, 
on  the  part  of  a  single  European  nation,  to  relax  their  stringent 
system  of  duties  on  imports  from  this  country.  It  is  possible  that 
Great  Britain  may  abate  her  corn  laws,  so  far  as  to  admit  Indian 
corn  at  a  nominal  duty.  If  it  should  be  done,  I  have  little  faith 
in  our  being  able  to  ship  it  to  advantage.  I  state  the  fact,  then, 
that  exports  will  not  increase  in  consequence  of  a  reduction,  or 
even  a  total  repeal,  of  the  present  tariff.  The  duty  in  Great  Brit- 
ain, on  all  the  products  of  the  United  States,  received  in  that 
kingdom,  including  cotton,  is  not  less  than  forty-eight  per  cent., 
and  exclusive  of  cotton,  three  hundred  per  cent,  j  and  this,  too, 
on  raw  produce  generally,  where  the  charge  of  freight  consti- 
tutes from  one- tenth  to  one  quarter  of  the  cost  here,  and  this  is 
free  trade  ! 

I  hope  you,  of  Virginia,  will  examine  this  matter,  and  ask 
yourselves  where  the  best  customers  are  to  be  found  for  your  agri- 
cultural products.  I  will  just  state  to  you,  here,  that  Massachu- 
setts takes  more  flour,  Indian  corn,  pork,  and  many  other  articles, 
annually,  the  productions  of  the  west,  as  well  as  of  Virginia,  than 
all  Europe. 

The  question  then  arises,  WJiat  will  be  our  condition  after  the 
proposed  plan  of  low  duties  goes  into  operation  ?  In  twenty  days 
after  the  bill  becomes  a  law,  it  will  have  reached  every  country  in 
Europe  with  which  we  have  trade ;  the  manufactories  are  all  set  in 
motion  for  the  supply  of  the  American  market ;  the  merchandise  is 


» 
136  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

shipped  on  account  of  foreigners,  in  many  cases  with  double 
invoices,  one  set  for  the  custom  house,  and  another  for  the  sales,  so 
that,  instead  of  the  duty  amounting  to  twenty  per  cent.,  it  will  not 
probably  exceed  fifteen  per  cent.  This  has  been  the  experience  of 
the  American  importers  in  New  York,  who,  previous  to  the  pas- 
sage of  the  tariff  of  184&,  had,  (most  of  them,)  abandoned  the 
business,  not  being  able  to  compete  successfully  with  fraudulent 
foreigners.  I  will  not  say  that  all  foreigners  commit  frauds  on  the 
revenue  ;  —  far  from  it ;  —  but  I  do  say,  that  enormous  frauds  have 
been  perpetrated  by  foreigners,  on  the  revenue,  under  ad  valorem 
duties,  and  will  be  again  —  prostrating  the  business  of  honest  for- 
eign and  American  importers.  In  less  than  twelve  months  after 
the  new  plan  shall  have  been  in  operation,  this  whole  country  will 
be  literally  surfeited  with  foreign  merchandise ;  if  it  be  not  so,  the 
revenue  will  fall  short  of  the  wants  of  the  government ;  we  shall 
then  owe  a  debt  abroad  of  millions  of  dollars,  which  must  be  paid 
in  coin.  The  exchanges  go  up  to  a  point  that  makes  it  profitable 
to  ship  specie  ;  money  becomes  scarce  in  the  Atlantic  cities  ;  yet 
bills  on  England  and  France  do  not  fall ;  the  loans  made  to  the 
south  and  west  are  called  in  ;  demands  for  debts  due  from  those 
sections  of  country,  are  made  ;  exchange  cannot  be  obtained ;  prod- 
uce is  purchased  and  shipped ;  and,  when  it  arrives  at  the  north, 
it  will  not  command  the  cost  in  the  west ;  a  paralysis  will  have 
struck  the  business  of  the  country ;  produce  will  no  longer  answer 
to  pay  debts  due  at  the  north,  and  the  next  resort  is  to  coin,  which 
is  to  be  collected,  and  sent  down  the  Mississippi,  or  over  the  moun- 
tains, to  Baltimore,  Philadelphia,  New  York,  and  Boston.  West- 
ern and  southern  credits  are  cut  off,  as  the  people  of  those  sections 
can  no.  longer  promptly  meet  their  engagements.  The  new  states, 
and  the  outer  circle  of  the  Republic,  are  the  weak  points ;  and  the 
first  giving  way  of  the  banks,  is  heard  from  those  points,  where 
there  is  the  least  amount  of  capital.  We  see  the  storm  approach- 
ing, like  a  thunder  shower  in  a  summer's  day ;  we  watch  its  prog- 
ress, but  cannot  escape  its  fall.  It  at  last  reaches  the  great  marts 
of  trade  and  the  exchanges,  having  swept  everything  in  its  course  ; 
and  the  banks  of  the  Atlantic  cities,  after  a  violent  effort  to  main- 
tain their  credit  and  honor,  are  forced  to  yield  to  this  Utopian 
experiment  on  the  currency.  I  have  no  hesitation  in  stating  that 


TARIFF  OF  1846.  137 

all  this  will  take  place  within  the  space  of  eighteen  months  from 
the  time  this  experimental  bill  goes  into  operation ;  and  not  a  spe- 
cie-paying bank  doing  business,  will  be  found  in  the  United  States. 
Where  will  be  the  revenue  which  was  to  produce  such  a  mighty 
sum  under  low  duties  ?  Where  is  the  Treasury,  and  the  Secretary, 
and  the  President,  and  his  cabinet  ?  The  treasury  is  empty ;  the 
secretary  is  making  his  estimates  of  income  for  1849,  and  preparing 
to  ask  Congress  for  a  large  batch  of  treasury  notes  ;  or,  perhaps, 
the  deficit  is  so  large  that  a  loan  .may  be  required.  We  have  now 
come  to  a  point  of  depression  in  the  great  business  of  the  country, 
which  has  attracted  the  attention  and  anxiety  of  all  classes  of  peo- 
ple, all  having  felt  its  blight,  excepting  the  great  capitalists  and 
money -holders,  who  are  reaping  golden  harvests  by  the  purchase  of 
property,  which  the  wants  of  the  unfortunate  throw  into  the  mar- 
ket at  ruinous  rates.  It  is  now  seen  and  felt  from  the  low  wages 
of  labor,  and  the  great  number  of  persons  unemployed,  with  the 
cries  of  distress  from  all  quarters,  that  it  is  the  labor  and  not  the 
capital  of  the  country  that  suffers  by  violent  revulsions  caused  by 
unwise  legislation.  Have  the  people  of  the  south  and  west  forgot- 
ten their  troubles  of  1837  to  1842,  to  the  hour  of  the  passage  of 
that  law,  which  has  redeemed  the  credit  of  the  government,  and 
restored  prosperity  to  the  country  ?  I  have  intimated  that  there  is 
less  capital  in  the  new  states,  than  in  many  of  the  old  ones  ;  it  will 
not  be  denied  that  the  moneyed  capital  of  this  country  is  held  in 
the  northern  and  eastern  states,  and  that  the  south  and  west  are 
usually  largely  indebted  to  them.  Now,  I  should  be  glad  to  be 
informed  what  benefit  is  to  be  derived  by  a  planter  in  Alabama  or 
Mississippi,  or  a  farmer  in  Ohio  or  Illinois,  by  a  change  like  that  I 
have  described  ;  particularly,  if  by  chance  he  should  be  in  debt  ? 
Do  the  people  of  the  south  believe  they  can  raise  the  price  of  cot- 
ton, or  be  able  to  negotiate  loans,  to  prosecute  the  construction  of 
their  contemplated  railroads  ?  Do  Ohio,  Louisiana,  Illinois,  Mich- 
igan, believe  they  are  to  create  a  better  market  for  their  produce, 
or  sooner  complete  the  harbors,  so  much  desired  on  the  shores  of 
those  "  inland  seas,"  and  be  able  to  negotiate  loans,  and  obtain 
subscribers  to  the  stock  of  their  intended  railroads,  by  the  adop- 
tion of  this  new  system  of  political  economy  ?  And  now,  what 
say  the  great  States  of  New  York  and  Pennsylvania  to  this  pro- 
is 


138  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

posed  experiment  ?  Can  they  afford  to  try  it,  and  are  they  ready  ? 
If  they  are,  it  will  be  adopted  ;  if  they  are  not,  the  present  law 
will  stand,  and  the  country  will  repose  for  a  while  in  happiness 
and  prosperity.  Any  one  would  suppose  that  those  states  that  are 
now  just  emerging  from  embarrassment,  which  at  one  time  seemed 
almost  sufficient  to  overwhelm  them  in  ruin,  would  be  unwilling  to 
try  an  experiment,  which  is  certain,  in  my  judgment,  to  place  them 
in  a  position  that  will  be  the  means  of  destroying  the  fair  prospects 
of  thousands,  who  are  resting  in  quiet  security  upon  the  faith  of  what 
they  deem  a  paternal  and  wise  government.  The  question  of  an 
important  alteration  in  our  revenue  laws  should  not  be  kept  in 
suspense.  The  treasury  will  feel  its  effects  before  the  end  of  the 
present  year.  The  expectation  of  a  great  reduction  of  duties  pre- 
vents the  merchants  from  going  on  with  their  usual  business. 
Voyages  are  delayed,  and  orders  for  goods  are  held  back,  until  this 
important  question  shall  be  settled.  I  say,  therefore,  if  we  are  to 
go  through  this  fiery  ordeal,  let  it  come  at  once, — we  cannot  prob- 
ably place  ourselves  in  a  better  condition  than  we  are  now,  to  meet 
the  troubles  that  await  us. 

Mr.  Walker  proposes  to  substitute  ad  valorem  for  specific  duties, 
in  opposition  to  our  own  experience,  and  that  of  almost  every  other 
country.  I  have  never  yet  found  an  American  merchant,  who  has 
not  been  in  favor  of  specific  duties,  wherever  it  can  be  done  with 
convenience  to  the  importer  and  the  government.  I  confess  it  is  a 
bold  measure  to  propose  a  total  and  entire  change  of  a  revenue 
system,  which  was  established  with  the  government,  and  has  stood 
the  test  of  experience  through  all  the  trials  of  political  parties  and 
administrations,  from  General  Washington  to  Mr.  Polk.  It 
appears  more  extraordinary  at  this  time,  as  the  country  is  in  a  high 
state  of  prosperity.  The  revenue  is  enough  for  all  the  reasonable 
wants  of  the  government,  and  the  people  appear  to  be  satisfied  with 
their  condition.  The  resources  of  the  country  were  never  devel- 
oping more  rapidly  ;  the  increase  of  our  population  the  present 
year,  will  probably  equal  that  of  the  last,  which  I  estimate  at  six 
hundred  thousand  souls ;  our  wealth,  too,  has  been  wonderfully 
augmented  by  the  construction  of  railroads ;  there  has  been  a  great 
increase  of  our  shipping,  engaged  in  the  domestic  commerce  of  the 
country,  not  only  by  sea,  but  upon  our  rivers  and  great  lakes  ; 


TARIFF  OF  1846.  139 

the  manufacturing  interest  has  been  largely  extended ;  and  the 
soil,  too,  has  been  made  to  produce  vastly  more  than  at  any  former 
period.  The  whole  productive  power  of  the  country  has  been 
greater  in  three  years,  (that  is,  since  the  passage  of  the  tariff  of 
1842,)  than  during  any  equal  space  of  time  in  our  national  history. 
There  have  been  three  periods  of  universal  distress  throughout  our 
land,  since  the  peace  of  1783,  and,  in  each  case,  under  low  duties. 
I  appeal  to  those  who  remember  those  periods  ;  and  to  others, 
I  refer  to  the  annals  of  our  country.  Those  periods  were  from 
1783,  (the  conclusion  of  the  revolutionary  war,)  to  1789  ;  1815  to 
1824  ;  1837  to  1842. 

I  would  respectfully  recommend  to  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury, 
who  appears  to  have  received  new  light  upon  the  subject  of  our 
national  economy,  to  examine  the  history  of  the  legislation  of 
Congress,  at  the  above  periods.  He  will  find  in  his  own  depart- 
ment of  the  government,  an  abundance  of  evidence  of  the  distress 
that  existed  under  low  duties,  and  a  deranged  currency. 

There  is  a  prevalent  idea  abroad,  that  the  capital  of  the  country 
will  suffer  exceedingly  by  a  revulsion  in  its  business,  and  that  the 
tariff  of  1842  has  operated  in  favor  of  the  capital,  and  not  the  labor 
of  the  country.  There  can  be  no  doubt  that  capital  is  generally 
profitably  and  safely  employed,  and  well  paid.  The  profits  of 
capital  are  low,  when  wages  are  low ;  but  capital  has  usually  had 
the  power  to  take  care  of  itself,  and  does  not  require  the  aid  of 
Congress  to  place  it  in  any  other  position,  than  to  put  the  labor  in 
motion.  Congress  should  legislate  for  the  labor,  and  the  capital 
will  take  care  of  itself.  I  will  give  you  an  example  of  the  rate 
of  wages  under  low  duties,  and  under  the  tariff  of  1842.  In  1841 
and  1842,  the  depression,  in  all  kinds  of  business,  became  so 
oppressive,  that  many  of  the  manufacturing  establishments  in  New 
England  were  closed,  the  operatives  dismissed,  the  mechanical 
trades  were  still,  and  every  resource  for  the  laboring  man  seemed 
dried  up. 

In  the  city  of  Lowell,  where  there  are  more  than  thirty  large 
cotton  mills,  from  six  to  •  sixteen  thousand  spindles  each,  it  was 
gravely  considered,  by  the  proprietors,  whether  the  mills  should 
be  stopped.  It  was  concluded  to  reduce  the  wages  ;  this  was  done 
several  times,  until  the  reduction  brought  down  the  wages  from 


140  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

about  two  dollars,  to  one  dollar  and  fifty  cents  per  week,  exclusive 
of  board ;  this  operation  took  place  upon  between  seven  and  eight 
thousand  females  ;  the  mills  run  on  ;  no  sales  were  made  of  the 
goods ;  the  south  and  west  had  neither  money   nor   credit ;  and, 
finally,  it  was  determined  to  hold  out  till  Congress  should  act  upon 
the  tariff.     The  bill  passed,  and,  of  course,  the  mills  were  kept 
running,  which  would  not  have  been  the  case,  if  the  act  had  been 
rejected ;  and  now  the  average  wages  paid  at  Lowell, — taking  the 
same  number  of  females,  for  the  same  service, — is  two  dollars  per 
week,  exclusive  of  board.    Yet,  Mr.  Walker  says,  labor  has  fallen. 
Where   are  the  wages  for  labor,  I  ask,  lower  than  they  were  in 
1842  ?     Who  is  to  be  benefited  by  the  adoption  of  a  system  that 
gives  up  everything,  and  gives  no  reasonable  promise  of  anything  ? 
I  have  succeeded,  I  trust,  in  showing  that  there  is  no  probability 
of  our  exports  increasing,  in  consequence  of  a  reduction  of  the 
tariff,  and   that  the  products  of  the  western  states  find  the  best 
market    among    the    manufacturers   at  home.     In    regard    to   the 
southern  and  cotton-growing  states,  they  are  to  be  greatly  bene- 
fited  by  the   increase  of  consumption  of   their  staples   at  home. 
No  appreciable  quantity  can  be  shipped  to  England,  if  the  tariff 
should  be  repealed,  it  being  already  free  of  duty.     The  establish- 
ment  and  successful  prosecution  of  the   spinning  of  cotton,  in  this 
country,  has  enabled  the  planters  to  obtain,  for  several  years  past 
at  least,   an  additional  cent   per  pound  on  the  whole  crop,  and, 
perhaps,  even  more.     The  Americans '  are  the  greatest  spinners  of 
that  article  in  the  world,  the  British  excepted.     This  competition 
has  kept  the   price    from  falling  to  a  ruinous   point,  on  several 
occasions,  and  it   has  been   acknowledged,   by  many  of  the  most 
intelligent  planters  in   the  south.     Our  consumption  reached,  the 
last  year,  one  hundred  and  seventy-six  millions  of  pounds,  which 
is  equal  to  the  whole  crop  of  the  Union,  in  1885,  and   equal  to 
the    whole    consumption  of  Great  Britain,   in   1826.     This   is    a 
striking  fact,  and  one  that  should  be  remembered  by  the  planters. 
The  history  of  the  production   and   manufacture  of  cotton  is  so 
extraordinary,  that  I  propose  to  send  to  you  some  statistics  on  the 
subject,  furnished  me  by  a  friend.     I  hope  you  will  not  deem  me 
over-sanguine  when  I  tell  you  it  is  my  belief  that  the  consumption 
of  cotton  in  this  country  will  double  in  eight  or  nine  years,  and 


TARIFF  OF  1846.  141 

that  it  will  reach  four  hundred  millions  of  pounds  in  1856;  and 
further,  that  we  are  not  only  destined  to  be  the  greatest  cotton- 
growers,  but  the  most  extensive  cotton-spinners  in  the  world.  We 
have  all  the  elements  among  ourselves  to  make  us  so.  The  manu- 
facture of  cotton  is  probably  in  its  infancy ;  but  a  moderate  portion 
of  mankind  have  yet  been  clothed  with  this  healthful  and  cheap 
article.  Nothing  can  stop  the  progress  of  this  manufacture,  but 
some  suicidal  legislation,  that  will  prostrate  the  currency  of  the 
country,  and  deprive  the  people  of  the  means  of  consuming.  There 
can  be  no  legislation  that  will  break  down  the  manufacture  of 
cotton  and  wool,  excepting  through  the  operations  of  the  currency. 
We  may  be  disturbed  by  low  duties  ;  the  finer  descriptions  of 
cotton  and  woollens,  printed  goods,  and  worsted  fabrics,  would 
be  seriously  affected  by  lowr  ad  valorem  duties  ;  but  the  coarser 
fabrics,  such  as  are  generally  consumed  by  the  great  body  of  the 
people,  will  be  made  here  under  any  and  all  circumstances.  If 
we  have  competition  from  abroad,  the  labor  must  and  will  come 
down ;  this  has  been  often  tested,  and  our  experience  establishes 
the  fact. 

In  Virginia  and  other  southern  states,  and  even  at  the  west, 
many  persons  have  believed  that  the  protective  system  was  made 
by  and  for  New  England,  and  that  New  England,  and  particularly 
Massachusetts,  could  not  thrive  without  it.  Now  this  is  an  error  ; 
the  south  and  west  began  the  system  of  high  protective  duties,  for 
the  purpose  of  creating  a  market  for  their  produce,  (although  the 
principle  of  discrimination  was  recognized  and  established  when  the 
first  tariff  was  enacted.)  It  is  not  true,  that  we  are  more  dependent 
on  a  protective  tariff,  than  the  middle,  western,  or  southern  states. 
Those  states  that  possess  the  smallest  amount  of  capital,  are  the 
most  benefited  by  a  protective  tariff.  We  have  in  New  England 
a  great  productive  power ;  in  Massachusetts  far  greater  than  any 
other  State,  in  proportion  to  population.  We  have  a  hardy,  indus- 
trious, and  highly  intelligent  population,  with  a  perseverance  that 
seldom  tires,  and  we  have  also  acquired  a  considerable  amount  of 
skill,  which  is  increasing  every  day ;  besides,  we  have  already  accom- 
plished a  magnificent  system  of  intercommunication  between  all 
parts  of  this  section  of  the  country  by  railroads  ;  this  is  the  best 
kind  of  productive  power,  having  reduced  the  rate  of  carriage  to  a 


WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

wonderful  extent ;  this  being  done,  we  have  money  enough  remain- 
ing, to  keep  all  our  labor  employed,  and  prosecute  our  foreign  and 
domestic  commerce,  without  being  in  debt  beyond  the  limits  of  our 
own  state.  Now  I  ask,  how  we  shall  stand,  compared  with  Penn- 
sylvania, Ohio,  Alabama,  Georgia,  or  Louisiana,  when  the  day  of 
financial  trial  shall  come.  I  do  not  deny  we  shall  suffer ;  but  as  it 
has  been  in  times  past,  we  shall  go  into,  and  come  out  of  the  troubles 
far  stronger  than  any  other  state  out  of  New  England.  It  is  not 
nly  purpose  to  present  to  you  the  balance-sheet  of  Massachusetts, 
but  it  is  due  to  her  character  and  her  dignity  that  she  should  stand 
before  you  in  her  true  position.  I  have  never  advocated  a  protec- 
tive tariff  for  my  own  or  the  New  England  States  exclusively ;  nor 
have  those  gentlemen  with  whom  I  have  been  associated  in  this 
cause,  at  any  time,  entertained  a  narrow  or  sectional  view  of  the 
question.  "We  have  believed  it  to  be  for  the  interest  of  the  whole 
country,  that  its  labor  should  be  protected  ;  and  so  far  as  I  have  had 
to  do  with  the  adjustment  of  those  difficult  combinations  embraced 
in  a  tariff  bill,  I  have  endeavored  to  take  care  that  the  interests  of 
all  the  states  were  protected,  whether  they  were  large  or  small.  I 
say  now  to  you,  and  it  should  be  said  in  Congress  and  to  the  country, 
that  Massachusetts  asks  no  exclusive  legislation.  If  Pennsylvania, 
New  York,  and  Ohio,  the  three  great  states,  with  Kentucky,  Geor- 
gia, Missouri,  Alabama,  and  Louisiana,  wish  to  try  an  experiment 
on  iron,  coal,  hemp,  cotton  bagging,  sugar,  etc.,  etc.,  I  am  ready  as 
one  citizen  of  Massachusetts  to  meet  it,  and  await  in  patient  sub- 
mission the  result,  which  I  doubt  not  will  be  found,  within  eighteen 
months,  in  the  realization  of  all  I  have  predicted.  I  say,  again,  I 
would  not,  if  I  could,  have  a  tariff  made  for  Massachusetts  alone. 
If,  however,  there  should  be  a  new  one,  let  our  interests,  with  those 
of  every  other  in  the  Union,  share  that  protection  to  which  we  are 
all  entitled,  and  of  which  we  claim  our  full  share.  I  can,  with  con- 
fidence, assure  you,  that  we  shall  go  upward  and  onward.  We 
will  work.  If  twelve  hours'  labor  in  the  twenty-four  will  not 
sustain  us,  we  can,  and  will  work  fourteen ;  and,  at  the  same  time, 
feel  that  Congress  cannot  take  the  sinews  from  our  arms,  or  rob  us 
of  the  intelligence  acquired  from  our  system  of  public  schools, 
established  by  the  foresight  and  wisdom  of  our  fathers. 

At  the  risk  of  writing  a  long  letter,  I  cannot  forbear  alluding  to 


TARIFF  OF  1846.  143 

the  fact,  that  the  habitual  agitation  of  this  question  of  the  tariff  has 
worked,  in  the  main,  to  the  advantage  of  New  England. 

We  were,  previous  to  the  war  of  1812,  an  agricultural  and  navi- 
gating people.  The  American  system  was  forced  upon  us,  and 
done  for  the  purpose  of  creating  a  home  market  for  the  products  of 
the  soil  of  the  south  and  west ;  we  resisted  the  adoption  of  a  sys- 
tem, which  we  honestly  believed  would  greatly  injure  our  naviga- 
tion, and  drive  us  from  our  accustomed  employments,  into  a  busi- 
ness we  did  not  understand.  We  came  into  it,  however,  reluc- 

* 

tantly,  and  soon  learned,  that,  with  the  transfer  of  our  capital, 
we  acquired  skill  and  knowledge  in  the  use  of  it,  and  that  so  far 
from  our  foreign  commerce  being  diminished,  it  was  increased,  and 
that  our  domestic  tonnage  and  commerce  were  very  soon  more  than 
quadrupled.  The  illustrations  were  so  striking  in  every  department 
of  labor,  that  those  who,  fifteen  years  ago,  were  the  strongest  oppo- 
nents among  us,  have  given  up  their  theories,  and  acknowledged 
that  the  revelations  are  such  as  to  satisfy  the  most  sceptical.  We 
have  gone  forward  steadily,  till  many  descriptions  of  manufactures 
are  as  well  settled  in  New  England,  as  the  raising  of  potatoes. 
Our  experience  has  given  us  skill,  and  of  course  we  have  confi- 
dence in  our  own  resources  that  does  not  exist  elsewhere. 

When  I  converse  with  gentlemen  from  the  south  and  west  res- 
pecting the  establishment  of  manufactures,  they  reply  that  they 
should  long  ago  have  engaged  in  it,  but  the  repeal  of  the  tariff,  the 
action  of  the  government,  prevented  them.  Now  you  cannot  blame 
us,  if  this  constant  agitation  of  the  tariff  question  has  tended  to 
give  New  England,  not  a  monopoly,  but  advantages  which  sne  has 
not  been  instrumental  in  bringing  about.  I  have  no  doubt  we  have 
been  gainers  on  the  whole  by  these  agitations,  yet  we  have  at  times 
been  great  sufferers.  I  wish  those  states  that  have  withheld  their 
energies  from  entering  upon  these  industrial  pursuits,  to  examine 
this  matter, — and,  if  I  am  right,  to  take  an  observation  and  a  new 
departure.  We  have  no  jealousy  whatever  concerning  the  estab- 
lishment of  manufactories  in  all  parts  of  the  country  ;  on  the  con- 
trary, I  believe  those  gentlemen  from  the  south  and  west  who  have 
been  here,  will  bear  witness  to  the  desire,  on  the  part  of  the  people 
who  are  engaged  in  manufactures,  to  impart  all  the  information  in 
their  power.  There  is  room  for  us  all.  When  the  southern  and 


144  WORKS  OF  S.  D  BRADFORD. 

western  states  shall  manufacture  their  own  clothing,  we  shall  have 
become  extensive  exporters  of  the  variety  of  manufactures  produced 
here.  We  have  the  ships,  and  the  men  to  navigate  them.  We 
shall  pursue  an  extensive  foreign  commerce  with  manufactures, 
and  bring  home  the  produce  of  other  countries,  such  as  coffee,  tea, 
etc.,  and  pay  for  the  produce  of  the  south  and  west,  with  for- 
eign luxuries,  and  necessaries  of  life.  It  has  often  been  said  here 
by  us  who  advocate  protection  to  American  labor,  that,  in  wearing 
British  cottons,  woollens,  etc.,  we  are  consuming  British  wheat, 
beef,  pork,  etc.  I  am  happy  to  find  authority  of  the  highest 
respectability  for  this  opinion,  in  the  person  of  one  of  the  most 
eminent  merchants,  as  well  as  one  of  the  best  and  most  honorable 
men  in  England,  Mr.  William  Brown,  of  Liverpool — lately  the 
free  trade  candidate  for  Parliament  from  the  county  of  Lancaster. 
In  a  letter  to  John  Rolfe,  Esq.,  a  landholder,  upon  the  advantages 
of  free  trade,  he  says  :  "  You  next  allude  to  the  league  wishing  to 
injure  you.  I  presume  it  will  not  be  denied,  that  all  interests  in 
the  kingdom  are  so  linked  together,  that  none  of  them  can  suffer 
without  the  others  being  injured.  We  must  sink  or  swim  together! 
Paradoxical  as  it  may  appear,  I  think  Great  Britain  is  the  largest 
grain-exporting  country  in  the  world,  although  it  is  impossible 
to  estimate  accurately,  what  quantity  of  grain,  etc.,  is  consumed  in 
preparing  £50,000,000  value  of  exports,  by  which  you  are  so 
greatly  benefited.  It  is  placed  in  the  laboratory  of  that  wonderful 
intellectual  machine,  man,  which  gives  him  the  physical  power, 
aided  by  steam,  of  converting  it  into  broadcloth,  calico,  hardware, 
etc.,  and  in  these  shapes  your  wheats  find  their  way  to  every 
country  in  the  world." 

I  thank  Mr.  Brown  for  the  clear  statement  he  has  presented,  of 
the  importance  of  a  home  market,  and  commend  this  extract  from 
his  letter  to  the  consideration  of  every  farmer  in  the  United  States  ; 
it  is  perfectly  sound,  and  applies  with  particular  force  to  our  pres- 
ent condition.  To  place  the  people  in  a  condition  of  permanent 
and  solid  prosperity,  you  must  encourage  home  industry,  by  obtain- 
ing the  greatest  amount  of  production  ;  this  can  only  be  obtained 
by  diversifying  labor,  which  will  bring  with  it  high  wages  ;  and 
unless  the  labor  is  well  paid,  our  country  cannot  prosper.  Agri- 
culture, the  foundation  of  all  wealth,  depends  on  production,  and 


TARIFF  OF  1846.  145 

a  market  for  those  products.  The  encouragement  of  agriculture, 
in  the  establishment  of  manufactures,  if  maintained,  will  be  cer- 
tain to  secure  a  market. 

I  ask  the  farmer  to  look  for  a  moment  at  the  following  state- 
ment.    American  flour  in  Cuba  pays  a  duty  of  about  ten  dollars 
per  barrel :  in  Rio  Janeiro,  five  to  six  dollars  ;  and  in  many  other 
ports,  the  duties  vary  from  fifty  to  one  hundred  and  fifty  per  cent.; 
in  return,  we  take  coffee,  most  of  which  we  pay  for  in  coin,  free 
of  duty — and  this  is  free  trade.     We  have,  too,  treaties  of  reciproc- 
ity with  foreign  countries  ;  and,  among  others,  Great  Britain,  (not 
including  her  colonies,)  by  which  her  ships  are  admitted  into  our 
ports  on  the  same  terms  as  our  own  ;  they  come  freighted  with 
her  minerals  and  manufactures,  which  are   sold  here,  and  take  in 
return  a  variety  of  articles,  the  produce  of  the  United  States,  such 
as  timber,   lumber,  fish,  etc.,   touch  at  New  Brunswick,  or  some 
other  colony,  and  go  home,  free  of  duty.     We  have,  too,  triangu- 
lar voyages  made  from  England  to   Jamaica,  and  other  British 
islands,  with  cargoes,  and  thence  to  the   southern  states,    where 
they  load  with  cotton,  tobacco,   and  other  produce  for  England  : 
this,  too,  is  called  free  trade.     I  will  not  pursue  this  branch  of  the 
subject,  but  give  you  a  fact.     Not  long  since,  the   foreign  carrying 
trade  was  nearly  all  in  our  own  hands  ;  now  the  reciprocity  system, 
not  including  the  colonies  of  foreign  nations,   gives  to  foreigners 
more  than  one-third  of  all  the  carrying  trade  of  the  United  States  ! ! 
I  cannot  believe  the  time  is  far  distant  when  the  government  of  the 
United  States  will  protect,  as  it  ought,  the  foreign  navigating  inter- 
est of  this  great  country.     If  we  would  have  American  seamen  to- 
man our  navy,  the  mercantile  marine  must  be  protected  in  the  car- 
rying of  our  own  productions.     One  more  fact,  and  I  will  close 
these  long,  and,  I  fear  you  will  think,  desultory  remarks.     Some- 
years  since,  a  few  bales  of  American  coarse  cottons  were  sent  from 
this  country  to  Hindostan,  as  a  commercial  experiment ;  the  superi- 
ority of  the  frabric,  and  the  material  out  of  which  it  was  made,  grad- 
ually brought  the   goods  into  notice   and  use  in  that  country,  and 
the  annual  exportation  from  the  United  States  increased  from  a  few 
bales   up  to  three   and  four  thousand  per  annum.     The   British 
manufacturers  were  much  annoyed  at  this  interference,  and  it  is 
presumed  that  it  was  through  their  influence  that  the  East  India 

19 


146  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

Company  (the  government  of  that  country)  have  repeatedly  aug- 
mented the  discriminating  duty  on  these  goods,  (which  are  called 
drillings,)  for  the  purpose  of  protecting  their  own  manufactures 
against  those  of  the  United  States.  Prior  to  1836,  the  duty  was 
five  per  cent,  in  favor  of  British  goods ;  in  that  year,  it  was 
increased  to  eight  and  a  half  per  cent. ;  a  few  years  after  augmented 
to  ten  and  a  half  per  cent.;  and  even  this  rate  of  differential  duty 
proved  insufficient  to  keep  out  the  Americans,  who  drove  a  profit- 
able trade,  notwithstanding  the  great  difference  against  them. 

And  now,  within  a  few  months,  the  East  India  Company  have 
been  compelled  again  to  increase  the  discriminating  duty  to  fifteen 
per  cent.,  in  order  to  exclude  our  goods  altogether ;  and  this  dif- 
ference, will,  without  doubt,  accomplish  the  object.  These  facts 
are  deserving  of  a  passing  remark,  as  illustrative  of  the  energies 
and  resources  of  the  United  States.  As  late  as  the  declaration  of 
the  last  war  in  1812,  this  country  imported  almost  all  its  coarse 
cotton  fabrics  from  Hindostan,  whence  they  came  literally  by  ship 
loads,  and  were  paid  for  almost  altogether  in  coin.  No  country 
seemed  to  be  more  abundant  in  means  necessary  to  supply  such 
goods  cheaply,  than  Hindostan :  its  soil  furnished  an  abundance  of 
cotton,  which,  though  not  of  equal  quality  to  that  of  the  United 
States,  was  much  less  in  price,  and  labor  was  cheaper  than  in  any 
country  in  the  world.  Cotton  spinning  machinery  was  available 
through  the  medium  of  British  capital,  and  the  manufacturers 
received  a  protection  of  ten  and  one-half  per  cent.,  against  foreign 
interference.  No  country  seemed  more  secure  from  foreign  com- 
petition in  these  goods,  than  Hindostan,  and  least  of  all  was  there 
fear  of  competition  from  the  United  States  ;  a  country  fifteen  thou- 
sand miles  distant,  where  a  day's  labor  will  earn  about  twenty-five 
pounds  of  good  rice,  while,  in  Hindostan,  it  obtains  less  than  ten 
pounds  of  very  inferior  rice.  But  the  American  planter  furnished 
a  better  raw  cotton  ;  the  manufacturer,  a  better  and  cheaper  fabric ; 
the  ship  owner,  a  speedy  and  cheaper  conveyance.  Their  united 
efforts  drove  the  British  manufacturer  of  these  coarse  goods  from 
the  largest  British  colonial  market,  and  which  the  American  would 
now  be  in  possession  of,  but  for  the  interposition  of  the  East  India 
Company,  with  another  protective  duty  to  sustain  their  manufacto- 
ries. I  have  no  fault  to  find  with  the  course  pursued  by  the  British 


TARIFF  OF  1846.  147 

in  these  regulations.  I  have  introduced  these  facts,  to  exhibit  to 
you  the  transcendent  folly  of  attempting  a  system  of  low  duties  and 
free  trade,  where  it  is  all  on  one  side.  I  have  not  yet  known  the 
British  government  to  reduce  the  duties  to  a  point,  that  has  reached 
a  single  important  interest.  Their  free  trade  and  low  duties  never 
apply  to  any  article  that  seriously  competes  with  their  own  labor, 
nor  are  they  likely  to  adopt  such  measures.  The  free  trade  of  the 
political  economists  of  Great  Britain  is  a  transcendental  philosophy, 
which  is  not  likely  to  be  adopted  by  any  government  on  the  face  of 
the  globe,  unless  it  be  the  Chinese,  and  we  have  already  the  earnest 
of  the  effect  of  low  duties  on  the  internal  condition  of  that  country. 
The  trade  of  that  empire  is  fast  approaching  to  barter  ;  the  precious 
metals  having  been  drained,  to  pay  for  the  foreign  products  intro- 
duced into  it. 

I  am  aware  that  I  have  written  a  long  letter,  but  I  could  not 
well  abridge,  consistently,  with  glancing  at  many  topics  in  which  I 
take  a  deep  interest.  The  subject  is  boundless,  and  I  would  cheer- 
fully carry  out,  by  illustrations  and  examples,  many  of  the  points 
upon  which  I  have  touched,  but  I  forbear  for  the  present.  "When 
I  have  the  pleasure  to  meet  you,  we  can  discuss  all  these  questions, 
embracing  not  only  the  present  condition,  but  the  future  prospects 
and  destiny  of  our  beloved  country,  for  which  I  entertain  the 
strongest  attachment.  Our  strength  and  glory  is  in  upholding  and 
maintaining  the  Union. 

I  shall  send,  in  a  few  days,  statistics,  furnished  me  by  a  friend, 
who  is  intelligent,  careful  and  accurate  in  these  matters,  and  who 
holds  himself  responsible  for  all  that  will  be  stated. 

I  pray  you,  my  dear  sir,  to  accept  the  assurances  with  which  I 
remain,  most  faithfully,  your  friend  and  obedient  servant, 

ABBOTT  LAWRENCE. 
To  the  Hon.  WILLIAM  C.  RIVES, 

Castle  Hill,  Albemarle  County,  Virginia. 


148  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

WEST  ROXBURY,  16th  February,  1846. 

DEAR  SIR, — I  send  you,  this  morning,  three  communica- 
tions, containing  some  comments  on  two  letters  of  the 
Honorable  Abbott  Lawrence,  addressed  to  Mr.  Rives,  of 
Virginia,  which  were  recently  published  in  the  Richmond 
Daily  Whig.,  and  also  in  the  Boston  Daily  Advertiser. 

They  were  first  offered  to  the  editors  of  the  first-named 
journal,  but,  not  having  heard  from  them  in  reply,  in  the 
time  specified,  I  had  a  personal  interview,  on  Saturday 
last,  with  Nathan  Hale,  Esq.,  editor  of  the  Boston  Daily 
Advertiser,  and  desired  him  to  give  them  a  place  in  the 
columns  of  his  paper.  This  request,  Mr.  Hale  thought 
proper  to  decline.  They  are  now  offered,  for  insertion,  in 
the  Boston  Post. 

I  remain,  dear  sir,  very  respectfully, 

your  friend  and  obedient  servant, 

S.  D.  BRADFORD. 
C.  G.  GREENE,  Esq., 

Editor  of  the  Boston  Post. 


WEST  ROXBURY,  (near  Boston.) 

February  5th,  1846. 

DEAR  SIR, — I  have  read  with  attention  the  two  letters 
recently  addressed  by  you  to  your  friend,  Mr.  Rives,  of 
Virginia,  and  being  unable  to  admit  many  of  your 
premises,  or,  having  admitted  them,  being  compelled  to 
draw  from  them  opposite  conclusions,  1  avail  myself  of 
the  earliest  opportunity  in  my  power  to  address  you  upon 
the  various  subjects  brought  under  consideration.  This  is 
of  the  greater  importance,  because,  looking  at  the  time 
you  have  chosen  to  reappear  before  the  public ;  the  chan- 
nel of  commmunication  you  have  selected,  as  well  as  the 
nature  of  the  arguments  you  have  used,  no  one  can  doubt 


TARIFF  OF  1846.  '      149 

that  your  object  is  to  act  upon  the  Congress  now  assem- 
bled at  Washington,  and  to  do  what  you  can  to  prevent 
any  change  or  reduction  in  the  tariff  of  1842.  This  is 
all  fair,  and  was  to  be  expected.  We  all  like  to  have  our 
own  way,  and,  when  one  is  doing  well,  and  engaged  in  a 
highly  prosperous  business,  it  cannot  be  supposed  he 
would  desire  a  change. 

I  do  not  propose  to  say  anything  on  the  subject  of  your 
first  letter,  devoted  almost  exclusively  to  the  suggestion  of 
a  plan  for  restoring  the  State  of  Virginia  to  her  former 
riches  and  magnificence,  because  my  opinion  of  it  will  be 
easily  deduced  from  the  general  remarks  I  shall  offer 
upon  your  second  letter.  No  one  can  wonder  that  you 
should  propose,  for  adoption  by  Virginia,  a  scheme  which 
you  have  found  to  answer  so  admirably  for  yourself,  and 
the  other  manufacturers,  with  whom  you  are  connected. 
Whether,  however,  you  have  not  acted,  as  some  doctors 
do,  who,  having  confidence  in  only  one  medicine,  propose 
it  as  the  panacea  for  all  kinds  of  diseases,  however 
different  in  character,  may  admit  of  some  doubt.  Leav- 
ing then  this  point  unsettled,  I  pass  directly  to  the  topics 
discussed  in  your  second  letter. 

From  the  intimation  given  near  the  close  of  your  first 
communication,  I  had  made  up  my  mind  that  your  second 
would  be  devoted  to  break  down,  demolish,  and  overthrow 
the  report  of  Mr.  Walker,  Secretary  of  the  Treasury;  nor 
could  I  wonder  that  you  should  desire  to  do  so.  This 
public  document  had  attracted  universal  attention,  not 
only  in  America,  but  in  Europe  also,  especially  in  England, 
where  it  had  been  hailed  as  the  olive  branch  of  peace, 
and  had  rendered  almost  acceptable  to  that  proud  nation 
the  high  and  lofty  pretensions  of  the  President's  message. 
It  had  been  mentioned  as  a  most  extraordinary  state 
paper  by  the  Governor  of  Massachusetts  in  his  annual 
message.  It  had  charged  upon  the  protective  system,  as 


150  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

sustained  by  the  tariff  of  1842,  the  greatest  injustice  and 
inequality.  It  had  attempted  to  show  how  it  enriched 
the  few  at  the  expense  of  the  many;  how  the  highest 
rates  of  duty  were  paid  upon  the  articles  consumed  princi- 
pally by  the  poorer  classes ;  how  oppressive  it  was  to  our 
commerce  and  navigating  interest;  and  unjust  also  towards 
the  agriculturists  and  planters,  in  limiting  their  markets. 
Mr.  Walker  had  estimated  the  sum  of  extra  taxation 
imposed  in  this  manner  upon  the  country  for  the  particu- 
lar benefit  of  the  manufacturers,  as  amounting  to  fifty-four 
millions  of  dollars  per  annum ;  being  equal  to  double  the 
amount  of  the  revenue  of  the  whole  United  States.  These 
are  high  charges,  and  ought  to  be  disproved,  if  they  can 
be.  I  hope,  however,  that  you  will  pardon  my  freedom 
of  speech,  and  impute  it  only  to  my  regard  for  the- truth, 
when  I  assure  you  that  I  have  been  unable  to  find  in  your 
letter  the  refutation  of  any  one  of  the  charges  above 
enumerated. 

You  commence  by  saying  that  the  proposal  to  change  or 
reduce  the  tariff  of  1842,  is  a  "  question  of  currency," 
and,  having  stated  the  amount  of  revenue  likely  to  be 
wanted  for  the  next  three  years,  (equal  to  thirty  millions 
a  year,)  you  assume  it  cannot  be  raised  by  the  rates  of 
duty  likely  to  be  recommended  by  Mr.  Walker,  (viz.,  about 
twenty  per  cent,  ad  valorem^)  without  an  importation  of 
one  hundred  and  sixty-five  millions  a  year.  You  then 
describe  the  disastrous  effects  of  over-importation,  the 
drain  of  our  coin  to  pay  our  foreign  debts,  the  probable 
suspension  again  of  specie  payments  by  our  banks,  and 
the  general,  if  not  universal,  prostration  of  the  commerce, 
occupations,  and  prosperity  of  the  country.  We  all 
remember  the  fearful  convulsions  in  the  trade  of  the 
country,  which  have  happened  so  often  ever  since  the 
peace  of  1815 ;  and,  had  you  assumed,  as  a  caption  to 
your  letter,  the  following:  "Remarks  on  the  Ruinous 


TARIFF  OF  1846.  151 

Consequences  of  Over-banking,  and  of  Excessive  Issues  of 
Paper  Money;"  or  had  you  taken  the  still  shorter  one  of 
"A  Defence  of  the  Sub-treasury  System,"  I  should  have 
said  you  had  made  a  good  argument,  and  that  the  verdict 
ought  to  be  given  in  your  favor.  But,  when  you  attribute 
all  these  disastrous  panics  and  revulsions  to  a  certain 
ordinance  called  a  tariff,  and  to  *•  low  duties,"  I  perceive 
at  once  you  have  fallen  into  an  error,  very  common  in 
practice,  but  often  very  fatal  in  its  consequences,  of  con- 
sidering certain  occurrences,  because  they  happen  to  be 
cotemporary,  as  causes  and  effects.  "There  have  been 
three,  periods,"  you  remark,  "  of  universal  distress  through- 
out our  land  since  the  peace  of  1783;  and  in  each  case 
under  low  duties.  Those  periods  were  from  1783  to  1789 
—1815  to  1824— and  1837  to  1842." 

Respecting  the  first-named  period,  you,  as  well  as 
myself,  must  have  reference  only  £<  to  the  annals  of  our 
country."  No  doubt  the  country  was  distressed,  and  this 
was  to  be  expected  at  the  conclusion  of  a  long  arid  disas- 
trous war,  which  was  carried  on  by  the  colonies,  consisting 
of  thirteen  distinct  States,  refusing  "to  form  a  union  for 
the  benefit  of  all ;"  owing  a  vast  debt  incurred  during  the 
revolutionary  struggle ;  without  credit,  and  almost  without 
hope ;  but  how  that  distress  could  have  been  alleviated 
by  imposing  a  high  tariff  of  duties  upon  this  poor  and 
miserable  nation,  deprived  of  the  means  of  payment,  I 
am  unable  to  comprehend.  Your  remark,  as  respects  this 
first  period,  of  course  has  reference  to  the  tariffs  estab- 
lished by  the  different  States  themselves,  as  our  present 
United  States  Government  dates  only  from  1789. 

As  respects  your  second  period,  1815  to  1824,  I  must 
express  my  surprise  how  you  can  call  that  a  period  of  low 
duties  under  the  tariff  of  1816.  If  you  will  refer  to  the 
debates  of  that  time,  you  will  find  it  was  considered  as 
imposing  very  high  duties.  This  was  the  tariff,  into  which 


WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

was  introduced,  for  the  first  time  in  our  country,  that 
legislative  puzzle  called  "  minimums"  which  used  to  per- 
plex us  so  much  in  casting  the  duties  on  our  importations. 
It  may  be  called  a  happy  invention  of  the  government 
for  taxing  an  article  seventy-five  per  cent,  on  its  cost 
under  a  pretended  duty  of  twenty-five  per  cent,  ad  valorem. 
It  was  found  to  succeed,  that  is,  to  create  a  revenue ;  and 
was  at  a  later  period  extended  to  woollen  goods  as  you 
may  remember,  in  the  celebrated  tariff  of  Henry  Clay  in 
1828,  which  soon  after  produced  such  a  frightful  revulsion 
in  the  business  of  the  country,  and  caused  the  rebellion 
in  South  Carolina. 

With  regard  to  the  third  period  you  have  named,  from 
1837  to  1842,  the  duties,  although  on  the  leading  articles 
of  importation  much  above  a  revenue  standard,  were  no 
doubt  considerably  lower  than  those  imposed  by  the  tariff 
of  1828 ;  and  let  me  remind  you  what  was  accomplished 
during  the  existence  of  the  tariff  then  in  being,  which 
commenced  in  1832.  General  Jackson  completed  the 
payment  of  the  public  debt,  amounting  at  the  conclusion 
of  the  war  to  one  hundred  and  fifty-eight  millions  of 
dollars ;  and  besides  providing  for  all  the  annual  expenses 
of  the  government,  amounting  to  an  average  of  nineteen 
millions  per  annum,  actually  paid  back  to  the  different 
States  the  sum  of  thirty-seven  millions,  being  the  surplus 
then  on  hand  in  the  public  treasury.  Such  results  as 
these  are  unparalleled  in  the  history  of  our  own  or  any 
other  country.  If  from  1837  to  1842  the  last  half  of  the 
ten  years,  during  which  the  tariff  of  1832  existed,  there 
were  violent  revulsions  in  the  trade  of  the  country,  the 
true  cause  of  them  may  undoubtedly  be  found  in  the 
previously  inflated  condition  of  the  currency. 

I  do  not  intend  to  deny,  nor  to  extenuate  in  any  way, 
the  frightful  crisis  which  took  place  from  1837  to  1842, 
commencing  in  the  spring  of  the  first-named  year,  when 


TARIFF  OF  1846.  153 

our  whole  paper  money  system,  having  been  somewhat 
convulsed  and  shaken  from  the  date  of  the  famous  specie 
circular  of  the  eleventh  of  July,  1836,  gave  way,  and  sank 
into  chaos ;  when  some  of  the  richest  and  most  extensive 
manufacturers  in  Boston  are  said  to  have  had  a  meeting 
to  deliberate  whether  they  should  stop  payment,  or  compel 
the  banks  to  do  so ;  and  which  ended  in  the  surrender  of 
the  last  named,  in  defiance,  as  Mr.  J.  Q.  Adams  justly  said 
at  the  time,  "of  every  principle  of  honor  and  justice." 
We  all  remember  those  times  "  which  tried  men's  souls," 
and  their  pockets  too ;  but  if  you  attribute  them  to  the 
tariff,  you  deceive  yourself.  They  were  produced  by  our 
system  of  banking,  and  abuse  of  paper  money ;  and 
although  '  at  present  the  mountain  appears  to  stand  so 
strong  that  nothing  can  move  it,  yet  its  foundation  rests 
on  paper  as  much  as  ever ;  and  what  happened  in  1837 
may  occur  again  under  similar  circumstances  at  any  time. 
Every  reflecting  mind  must  see  the  subject  in  this  light ; 
and  this  fact,  coupled  with  another,  viz.,  that  property, 
which  rests  on  the  continuance  of  high  protective  duties, 
can  never  be  depended  upon,  is  the  reason  why  some  of 
the  Lowell  shares  in  companies,  which  make  a  profit  of 
thirty  per  cent,  per  annum,  have  been  sold  at  par  or 
under,  and  can  even  now  be  had  at  thirty  per  cent, 
advance.  Call  to  mind  for  a  moment  two  facts  which 
illustrate  the  frightfully  inflated  state  of  the  currency^ 
during  the  time  now  under  consideration.  In  1833,  the 
foreign  importations  amounted  to  one  hundred  and  eight 
millions.  In  1836,  they  rose  to  one  hundred  and  ninety 
millions.  In  1833,  the  sales  of  the  public  lands  were  five 
millions.  In  1836,  they  were  twenty-five  millions ;  and 
had  not  General  Jackson,  with  an  energy  which  never 
faltered,  and  a  vigilance  which  never  slept,  promptly 
issued  his  specie  circular,  (so  much  abused  and  misrepre- 
sented in  Boston,)  the  whole  public  domain  would  have 

20 


154  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

been  soon  in  the  hands  of  reckless  speculators.  In  1838, 
when  the  paper  money  system  had  fallen  into  a  state  of 
collapse,  the  sales  of  the  public  lands  amounted  to  less 
than  two  millions.  No  country  in  modern  times  has 
probably  suffered  so  much  from  paper  money  as  our  own, 
except  perhaps  China  some  time  ago,  before  America  had 
any  trade  with  her.  If  you  happen  to  own,  or  have 
access  to  a  certain  book  on  China,  written  by  an  author 
named  Claproth,  you  may  find  there  a  full  account  of 
what  that  country  endured,  strikingly  similar  to  what  has 
occurred  in  our  own.  The  emperor  finally  abolished  the 
use  of  paper  money  altogether,  to  save  the  empire  from 
entire  destruction. 

Convinced,  as  I  think  you  must  be,  of  the  fatal  conse- 
quences of  paper  money,  and  filling,  as  you  have  at  times, 
a  place  in  the  legislative  halls  of  our  country,  I  have 
looked  with  aching  eyes  to  see  you  attempt  some  remedy 
for  so  great  an  evil.  Year  after  year  I  have  waited  to 
see  you  use  your  powerful  influence  to  have  some 
measures  adopted  to  increase  our  specie  basis,  to  do  away 
with  the  circulation  of  small  notes,  and  to  subject  our 
eight  or  nine  hundred  banking  corporations  to  some  more 
stringent  and  necessary  regulations,  in  order  to  prevent 
the  recurrence  of  such  a  frightful  revulsion,  as  you  predict 
will  happen  again,  should  the  present  tariff  be  reduced. 

There  is  no  country  in  the  world  which  has  the  means 
of  giving  itself  a  better  currency  than  our  own.  There 
is  no  empire  or  kingdom  in  Europe,  where  it  is  so  bad.  I 
have  seen  it  recently  stated  that  there  is  one  State 
(Michigan)  in  which  every  bank  has  failed,  that  has  been 
established  there  since  its  admission  into  the  Union. 

Another  gentleman  in  Boston  occupies  a  position  some- 
what similar  to  yours,  the  Hon.  Nathan  Appleton,  of 
whom  I  have  also  at  times  had  some  hope,  as  he  has, 
during,  I  believe,  almost  every  crisis  we  have  had  since  the 


TARIFF  OF  1846.  155 

war,  written  a  very  sound  and  sensible  letter  upon  the 
currency;  but  I  cannot  call  to  mind  any  effort  of  his 
when  in  public  life  to  carry  his  views  into  effect.  This 
gentleman,  also,  during  the  discussion  of  most  of  the 
tariffs  which  have  passed,  has  published  communications 
upon  the  impolicy  of  having  very  high  duties,  and  yet  he 
held  up  his  hand  in  Congress  in  favor  of  the  tariff  of 
1842,  which  was  carried  by  a  majority  of  only  one  vote, 
which  led  some  one  to  remark  that  "  Mr.  Appleton  was 
the  gentleman,  who  always  wrote  right,  but  voted  wrong." 
I  do  not  intend  to  speak  invidiously  of  a  gentleman  so 
much  esteemed  as  Mr.  Appleton,  for  whose  opinions  the 
public  have  so  much  respect.  I  only  regret  that,  when  in 
his  sound  judgment  he  had  decided  against  a  measure  as 
injurious  or  impolitic,  he  should,  under  any  circumstances, 
have  been  induced  to  give  it  his  support.  From  able 
communications  of  Mr.  Appleton  before  the  public,  I 
conclude  he  must  have  considered  many  of  the  duties 
imposed  by  the  tariff  of  1842  as  too  high. 

To  return  to  your  prediction  that,  under  the  tariff  to  be 
submitted  by  Mr.  Walker,  it  will  require  an  annual  impor- 
tation of  one  hundred  and  sixty-five  millions  to  raise  a 
revenue  of  thirty  millions,  it  might  be  sufficient  to  reply 
that  as  yet  the  financial  scheme  of  Mr.  Walker  has  not 
been  published,  nor  definitely  decided  upon  at  Washington. 
It  will  be  in  time  to  show  its  fallacy,  when  we  are  in  actual 
possession  of  it.  Without  any  great  stretch  of  the  imag- 
ination, I  can  conceive  of  a  plan,  by  which  the  required 
revenue  may  be  obtained  without  increasing  the  importa- 
tions a  single  dollar  beyond  the  amount  received  last 
year.  The  amount,  you  say,  imported  in  1845,  was  one 
hundred  and  fifteen  millions,  of  which  ninety  millions 
were  subject  to  an  average  duty  of  thirty-two  per  cent. 
This,  you  think,  may  be  reduced  to  twenty  per  cent. 
That  would  produce  a  deficiency  of  ten  million  eight 


156  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

hundred  thousand  dollars.  Now  it  is  well  known  that 
the  annual  consumption  of  tea  in  this  country  is  about 
sixteen  million  of  pounds,  and  of  coffee  about  one 
hundred  millions,  which  are  now  free  from  duty.  Lay 
an  average  duty  on  tea  of  thirty-seven  cents  per  pound, 
and  on  coffee  a  duty  of  five  cents,  and  you  have  the 
deficiency  made  good,  and  a  surplus  of  one  hundred  and 
twenty  thousand  dollars.  This  you  may  consider  a  bold 
proceeding,  but  I  would  remind  you  that,  up  to  the 
twentieth  of  May,  1830,  there  was  a  duty  on  coffee  of 
five  cents  per  pound,  of  which,  even  then,  when  the  price 
was  double  what  it  is  at  present,  I  do  not  remember  to 
have  heard  any  great  complaints ;  whereas  now,  on 
account  of  the  low  price  of  the  article  abroad,  the 
consumer  here,  after  paying  a  duty  of  five  cents,  could 
be  supplied  at  the  cost  of  twelve  and  a  half  to  fifteen 
cents.  The  duty  on  tea  also,  you  may  remember,  was  at 
one  time  very  high,  amounting  to  from  twelve  to  fifty 
cents  per  pound. 

Be  plea'sed  to  understand  that  I  do  not  admit  that  there 
would  be  the  deficit  you  name  under  any  modification  of 
the  tariff,  which  Mr.  Walker  would  be  likely  to  propose 
On  the  contrary,  I  am  confident  that,  on  many  articles 
of  import,  the  revenue  would  be  increased  by  reducing 
the  duty,  because,  as  the  secretary  very  justly  remarks, 
"  many  of  the  duties  imposed  by  the  tariff  of  1842  are 
becoming  dead  letters,  except  for  the  purpose  of  prohibi- 
tion, and  if  not  reduced  will  ultimately  compel  their 
advocates  to  resort  to  direct  taxation  to  support  the 
government."  I  am  against  exorbitant  rates  of  duty 
altogether,  and  would  therefore  avoid,  if  I  could,  imposing 
so  high  a  rate  upon  coffee  and  tea.  I  have  merely  named 
these  two  articles  to  prove  to  you  that,  were  it  necessary, 
we  could  make  up  the  deficit  you  have  so  confidently 
predicted,  by  imposing  on  two  articles  only  a  rate  of  duty 


TARIFF  OF  1846.  157 

which,  although  very  heavy  on  the  cost  of  those  commo- 
dities, would,  after  all,  be  scarcely  felt  by  the  consumers. 
If  they  pay  already  fifty-four  millions  per  annum  for  the 
exclusive  benefit  of  the  manufacturers  alone,  not  one 
dollar  of  which  ever  reaches  the  public  treasury,  they 
could  well  afford  to  exchange  this  enormous  burthen  for 
the  tax  I  have  proposed  on  tea  and  coffee,  and  would 
make  a  saving  of  more  than  forty  millions. 

I  need  not  remind  you  or  the  inevitable  result,  which 
always  follows  the  reduction  of  duty  upon  a  commodity. 
Look  at  the  wool  trade  in  England.  Prior  to  1824,  the 
duty  on  wool  was  sixpence  sterling  per  pound,  and  the 
imports  about  ten  millions  of  pounds.  In  1825,  that  free 
trader,  Mr.  Huskisson  reduced  it  to  one  penny.  The  con- 
sequence was,  that  the  very  next  year,  the  imports 
amounted  to  forty-two  million,  eight  hundred  and  thirty- 
seven  thousand,  eight  hundred  and  sixty-one  pounds.  The 
farmers  in  England,  who  had  "  slumbered  so  long  under 
the  tree  of  protection,"  like  our  farmers  in  1828,  1832, 
and  1842,  cried  out  they  should  be  ruined.  Now  listen 
for  a  moment  to  the  remarks  of  the  talented  author  of  the 
article  upon  the  woollen  trade  of  Great  Britain  in  the  last 
edition  of  the  Encyclopaedia  Britannica.  "  The  reduction" 
says  he,  "  has  produced  the  most  beneficial  effects,  not 
merely  on  manufactures,  but  also  on  the  steady  price  of 
English  wools,  which  have  been  much  higher  on  the  aver- 
age since  the  reduction  than  they  were  before,  although 
we  have  become  importers  to  the  extent  of  half  the  whole 
quantity  we  consumed  when  Mr.  Vansittart  imposed  the 
tax  of  sixpence  per  pound  in  1819."  I  hope  the  agri- 
culturists of  America  will  read  and  ponder  upon  this  when 
the  manufacturers  would  attempt  to  persuade  them  that 
they  can  flourish  only  "  whilst  slumbering  under  the  tree 
of  protection." 

"  We,  the  manufacturers,"  you  say,  "  have  no  jealousy 


158  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

whatever  concerning  the  establishment  of  manufactories 
in  all  parts  of  the  country/'  and  you  have  recommended 
this  plan  to  Virginia.  Why,  then,  have  you  such  a  jeal- 
ousy of  foreign  manufactures  that  you  would  have  them 
prohibited,  or  subject  to  such  exorbitant  duties  ?  There 
are  some  manufacturing  establishments  at  the  south 
already;  and  I  have  been  informed  that  they,  finding  it 
difficult  to  compete  with  the  manufacturers  of  New  Eng- 
land, are  desirous  of  being  protected  against  the  Yankees. 
This  might  have  been  anticipated;  for,  the  purpose  of  pro- 
tection being  to  sustain  an  interest  which  cannot  support 
itself,  the  principle  is  the  same  in  both  cases. 

In  my  next  letter,  I  shall  offer  some  remarks  upon  what 
you  have  alleged  as  to  the  illiberality  of  England  in  refus- 
ing to  take  our  products,  and  upon  the  great  increase  in 
our  shipping  and  general  prosperity,  which  I  shall  attempt 
to  show  we  are  in  possession  of,  not  in  consequence  of  our 
high  protecting  duties,  but  in  spite  of  them.  I  may  also 
submit  some  observations  on  other  topics  of  your  com- 
munication, which  do  not  occur  to  me  at  the  present 
moment. 

I  remain  very  truly, 

Your  friend  and  obedient  servant, 

S.  D.  BRADFORD. 
To  the  Hon.  ABBOTT  LAWRENCE,  Boston. 


WEST  ROXBURY,  (near  Boston,) 

February,  7th,  1846. 

DEAR  SIR, — I  promised,  in  my  last  communication,  to 
offer  some  remarks  in  the  present  upon  what  you  have 
alleged  respecting  the  illiberality  of  England  in  her  com- 
mercial dealings  with  us ;  upon  the  great  increase  in  our 
shipping  and  general  prosperity ;  and  perhaps,  also,  upon 
some  other  topics  discussed  in  your  letter.  In  order  to 


TARIFF  OF  1846.  159 

decide  the  first  point,  no  method  can  be  so  fair  as  to  com- 
pare the  amount  we  import  from  England  with  the 
amount  which  she  imports  from  America.  In  a  word, 
we  must  cipher  a  little,  in  order  to  settle  the  mat- 
ter ;  as  you  have  done  to  ascertain  how  large  our  im- 
portations would  have  to  be,  in  case  the  present  tariff 
should  be  reduced. 

I  have  not  before  me  the  official  returns  of  our  imports 
and  exports  for  the  last  year,  but  I  have  those  of  1838, 
which  probably  will  do  just  as  well ;  as  if  any  material 
change  has  since  occurred,  it  will  most  likely  show  a  rela- 
tive increase  of  our  exports  to  Great  Britain. 

I  find,  then,  that,  in  1838,  our  total  of  exports  amounted  to  $108,486,616 


Of  this  amount,  England  took  50,445,076 

Scotland,  1,695,978 

Ireland,  38,555 
The  British  West  Indies,  Gibraltar,  Malta,  British  East  Indies, 
British  American  Colonies,  Cape  of  Good  Hope,  Australia, 

Honduras,  and  British  Guiana,  6,663,802 


Making  a  grand  total  of  $58,843,412 

It  will  be  seen,  by  this,  that  Great  Britain  furnished  a 
market  for  more  than  one-half  of  our  exports  to  all  parts 
of  the  world ;  and,  on  cotton,  which  constituted,  in  that 
year,  sixty  per  cent,  of  our  total  exportations,  the  duty  im- 
posed was  only  two  shillings  and  eleven  pence,  or  seventy 
cents  per  hundred  weight,  equal  to  about  eight  or  nine 
per  cent,  on  the  cost  of  the  article  during  that  year ;  not 
seventy-five  to  one  hundred  per  cent.,  which  we  were 
exacting  at  the  time  on  many  kinds  of  her  coarse  cotton 
manufactures.  Our  imports  during  the  same  year  from 
Great  Britain  and  her  possessions  abroad,  before  enume- 
rated, amounted  to  forty-nine  million,  fifty-one  thousand, 
one  hundred  and  eighty  dollars,  and  the  greater  part  of 
them  were  subject  to  very  high  rates  of  duty,  varying 


160  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

from  ten  to  one  hundred  per  cent. ;  as  any  one  may  see 
by  turning  to  the  tariff  of  1832. 

During  this  year,  you  perceive  the  exports  exceeded  the 
imports  by  the  sum  of  nine  million,  seven  hundred  and 
ninety-two  thousand,  two  hundred  and  thirty-two  dollars ; 
but,  on  reference  to  the  official  value  of  imports  and  exports 
during  the  year  ending  thirtieth  of  June,  1844, 1  find  our  ex- 
ports to  Great  Britain  and  her  foreign  possessions  amounted 
to  sixty-one  million,  seven  hundred  and  twenty-one  thou- 
sand, eight  hundred  and  seventy-six  dollars,  whilst  our 
imports  from  these  countries  amounted  to  only  forty-five 
million,  four  hundred  and  fifty-nine  thousand,  one  hun- 
dred and  twenty- two  dollars ;  showing  a  balance  against 
Great  Britain  of  sixteen  million,  two  hundred  and  sixty-two 
thousand,  seven  hundred  and  fifty-four  dollars  in  a  single 
year !  Surely,  if  such  a  result  be  a  proof  of  illiberality,  I 
hope  we  may  continue  to  have  many  such,  not  only  from 
Great  Britain,  but  from  all  the  other  countries  in  the 
world. 

I  find,  also,  on  turning  to  the  annual  circular  of  Messrs. 
Colin  Campbell  &  Son,  of  Liverpool,  that  the  total  import 
of  cotton  into  the  United  Kingdom  in  1845,  was  one  mil- 
lion eight  hundred  and  fifty-six  thousand,  eight  hundred 
and  sixty-five  bales,  of  which  one  million,  five  hundred 
thousand,  three  hundred  and  sixty-nine  bales  were  from 
America;  and  that  this  amount  exceeded  that  of  1844, 
by  two  hundred  and  fifty-two  thousand,  six  hundred  and 
eighty-four  bales  ;  equal  to  more  than  half  of  all  the  cot- 
ton consumed  in  the  United  States,  according  to  your 
own  estimate.  How  can  you  expect  the  intelligent  plant- 
ers of  South  Carolina,  and  of  the  other  cotton-growing 
states,  to  be  content  with  the  narrow-contracted  market 
you  have  offered  them,  when  they  have  before  them  such 
a  fact  as  this ;  when  they  see  that  single  illiberal  nation, 


TARIFF  OF  1846.  161 

called  Great  Britain,  has  taken,  in  one  year,  very  nearly 
two-thirds  of  all  the  cotton  produced  in  the  country  ? 

I  do  not  find  that  you  are  contented  with  the  home 
market  for  the  sale  of  your  manufactures.  On  the  con- 
trary, it  would  seem,  by  your  account,  that  you  have 
invaded  with  them  South  America,  India,  China,  and  have 
even  sent  a  few  hundred  bales  of  "  cotton  drills  "  to  Lon- 
don, in  order  that  you  might  "  beard  the  lion  in  his  den  ; " 
writing  to  your  friend,  Mr.  Greg,  late  member  of  Parlia- 
ment for  Manchester,  at  the  same  time  saying  that  you 
were  quite  satisfied  "  the  Americans  would  soon  become 
extensive  exporters  of  twist,  as  well  as  of  all  manufactured 
fabrics  of  yarn  under  Number  Thirties,"  and  that, rf  where  the 
principal  elements  entering  into  the  cost  of  an  article  are 
composed  of  raw  cotton  and  power,  America  will  compete 
successfully  with  any  country  in  the  world,"  whilst,  at  the 
same  time,  such  cotton  drills  were  subject  to  a  duty  of 
seventy-five  to  one  hundred  per  cent,  in  this  country,  not 
one  fraction  of  which  are  you  willing  to  relinquish.  The 
letter  to  Mr.  Greg,  in  which  you  made  the  above  state- 
ment, was  published  both  in  England  and  America. 

You  have  informed  Mr.  Rives  how  you,  or  some  of 
your  friends,  have  been  treated  by  the  East  India  Com- 
pany, (at  Calcutta,  I  suppose,)  "  having  increased  the  dis- 
criminating duty  on  some  coarse  cottons,  (Suffolk  drills,  I 
have  understood  they  are  called,)  for  the  purpose  of  pro- 
tecting their  own  manufactures  against  those  of  the  United 
States."  You  add, — "  you  have  no  fault  to  find  with  the 
British,  in  these  regulations ; "  nor  could  you,  with  any 
propriety,  do  so,  knowing  the  tariff  of  1842,  which  you 
are  so  desirous  to  perpetuate,  affords  you  a  protection,  as 
I  have  before  observed,  on  a  similar  article  of  British 
manufacture,  of  more  than  four  times  the  amount. 

I  do  not  think,  however,  that  you  more  than  half  like 
this  fiscal  regulation  after  all,  or  you  would  not  have 

21 


162  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

devoted  so  much  of  your  letter  to  a  statement  of  it.  You 
should  remember  it  is  one  of  the  legitimate  consequences 
of  the  protective  system,  and  from  this  example  you  may 
be  able  to  form  some  conception  how  the  manufacturers 
of  Europe  felt  when  they  received  the  news  of  the  passage 
of  the  tariff  of  1842.  I  should  be  reluctant  to  repeat  the 
execrations  I  heard  some  of  them  utter,  especially  those 
who  had  shipped  their  property  to  our  shores  upon  the 
faith  of  the  American  government,  that  a  duty  only  of 
twenty  per  cent,  should  be  exacted ;  whereas  that  actu- 
ally demanded,  and  paid  also,  amounted,  in  many  instances, 
to  more  than  one  hundred  per  cent.  They  called  it  a 
legislative  fraud. 

I  cannot  say  I  think  you  have  spoken  with  justice  or 
candor  of  the  motives  which  actuated  the  British  gov- 
ernment in  the  total  repeal  of  the  duty  on  cotton.  The 
struggle  was  long  and  animated,  and  finally  terminated 
victoriously  for  the  manufacturers,  in  consequence  of  the 
untiring  exertions  of  those  free  traders  in  Manchester  and 
the  vicinity,  whose  system  of  political  economy  you  char- 
acterize as  a  "transcendental  philosophy,"  fit  only  for 
adoption  by  the  Celestials  of  China,  I  suppose,  whose 
commerce  you  represent  as  having  been  revolutionized 
by  this  novel  fallacy  called  free  trade.  "It  is  fast 
approaching,"  you  say,  "  to  barter,  the  precious  metals 
having  been  drained  to  pay  for  foreign  productions." 
Probably  a  large  proportion  of  these  "products"  con- 
sisted of  Lowell  cottons.  Indeed,  we  all  know  this  to  be 
the  fact;  and  how  can  you,  of  all  men  in  the  world, 
complain  of  this  ?  In  what  other  way  do  you  expect  to 
find  a  vent  for  the  manufactures,  in  which  are  to  be 
consumed  "the  four  hundred  millions  of  pounds  of 
cotton,"  which  you  say  will  be  required  in  1856  ?  "But 
a  moderate  portion  of  mankind,"  say  you,  "have  as  yet 
been  clothed  with  this  cheap  and  healthful  article."  Free 


TARIFF  OF  1846.  163 

trade,  according  to  your  account,  is  fast  producing  this 
desirable  result.  If  the  manufacturers  or  merchants  have 
found  their  recent  shipments  less  profitable  than  before,  it 
arises  probably  from  their  having  sent  too  many  goods. 
You  and  I  recollect  very  well  when  the  Chinese  would 
take  nothing  from  us  but  specie :  and  the  fitting  out  of 
half  a  dozen  Chinamen  by  the  late  Theodore  Lyman,  and 
the  present  T.  H.  Perkins,  and  Bryant  &  Sturgis,  pro- 
duced a  revulsion  in  the  money  market  of  the  country, 
similar  to  that  which  occurs  now  in  London,  when  there 
is  a  bad  harvest,  and  the  Bank  of  England  is  called  upon 
to  furnish  gold  to  pay  for  foreign  corn.  What  has  saved 
us  from  this  revulsion  now  but  free  trade,  according  to 
your  own  account  ? 

The  true  reason  why  the  British  government  did  not 
abandon  the  duty  on  cotton  sooner,  was.  that  they  deemed 
it  absolutely  necessary  to  enable  them  to  maintain  the 
public  faith.  It  amounted  to  about  three  millions  of 
dollars,  and  being  obliged  to  raise  two  hundred  and  fifty 
millions  per  annum,  to  pay  the  expenses  of  the  govern- 
ment and  the  interest  of  the  national  debt,  they  could  not 
then  see  any  way  to  do  without  it.  It  was,  however, 
finally  relinquished ;  government  at  the  time  remarking 
to  the  deputation  which  waited  upon  them,  they  regretted 
not  having  it  in  their  power  to  repeal  some  other  taxes 
on  commodities  connected  with  the  prosperity  of  British 
manufactures. 

In  speaking  of  the  increase  of  our  shipping,  I  am  in 
some  doubt  whether  you  have  referred  to  our  foreign  or 
domestic  tonnage,  or  to  both.  That  the  first  should  have 
greatly  increased  was  to  have  been  expected,  from  the 
great  addition  to  our  population,  and  from  the  vast 
increase  of  our  productions.  I  am,  however,  wholly 
unable  to  see  any  connection  between  this  increase  and 
the  protective  system.  On  the  contrary,  I  believe  it 


164  WOUKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

would  have  been  vastly  greater  without  it.  I  will  give 
you  my  reasons.  I  find,  on  reference  to  the  statistics  of 
our  country,  that,  as  long  ago  as  the  year  1807,  when  our 
population  was  only  six  and  a  half  millions,  the  foreign 
•exports  amounted  to  the  astounding  sum  of  one  hundred 
and  eight  millions,  and  our  imports  to  one  hundred  and 
thirty-eight  millions;  whereas,  for  the  year  ending  thirtieth 
June,  1844,  when  our  population  was  estimated  at  about 
twenty  millions,  the  exports  were  only  one  hundred  and 
eleven  millions,  and  the  imports  one  hundred  and  eight 
millions,  exactly  what  the  exports  amounted  to  thirty-seven 
years  before!  The  duties  at  that  time,  too,  (1807,)  were 
very  low.  Surely  there  must  be  a  cause  for  such  stupen- 
dous effects,  and  here  again  you  must  pardon  me  if  I  can 
find  it  only  in  free  trade. 

The  fact  is,  our  government,  at  that  period,  was  adminis- 
tered upon  wise  and  elevated  principles.  Our  legislators 
were  followers  of  the  maxims  laid  down  with  so  much  force 
and  illustrated  in  such  beautiful  language  in  the  third 
book  of  Telemachus,  where  Narbal  explains  to  him  the 
way  in  which  Tyre  had  become  such  a  rich  and  commer- 
cial city;  for  I  can  assure  you  that  this  "transcendental 
philosophy,"  as  you  call  it,  is  as  old  as  the  seventeenth 
century,  and  was  proclaimed  in  France  during  the  reign 
of  Louis  XIV.  by  Fenelon.  "Soyez  constant,"  says  he, 
"dans  les  regies  du  commerce;"  which  may  be  fairly 
translated  "alter  your  tariff  as  seldom  as  possible."  Mr. 
Walker  says  ours  has  been  changed  thirty  times  since 
1789. 

It  was  under  the  wise  and  paternal  administrations 
which  ruled  and  watched  over  the  welfare  of  our  country 
from  1789  to  1807,  that  so  many  of  the  citizens  of  Boston, 
Salem,  and  other  towns  acquired  those  large  fortunes, 
which  made  the  names  of  Gray,  Thorndike,  Peabody, 
Lyman,  Perkins,  and  several  others,  famous  all  over  the 


TARIFF  OF  1846.  165 

world.  In  1807  came  the  embargo;  the  non- intercourse 
followed ;  in  1816,  the  tariff!  These  gentlemen  seldom 
made  any  great  voyages  afterwards.  The  evidence  is 
perfectly  satisfactory  to  my  mind  that  our  tonnage,  espe- 
cially that  engaged  in  the  foreign  trade,  is  nothing  like 
what  it  would  have  been,  had  it  not  been  crippled  and 
crushed  by  the  protective  system.  Look  at  the  public 
documents,  and  see  what  a  tale  they  unfold.  Since  1815 
we  have  had  five  tariffs,  viz  :  In  1816,  1824,  1828,  1832, 
and  1842.  All  of  them,  except  that  of  1832,  called  the 
"  Compromise  Act,"  have  raised  the  duties,  especially  that 
in  1828.  Now  let  us  see  the  changes  in  our  tonnage  at 
or  near  the  above  named  periods  : 

Tons. 

In  1815  the  tonnage  registered,  enrolled  and  licensed  was  1,368,127 

1818  1,225,184 

1828  1,741,391 

1829  1,260,797 

1830  1,192,776 

In  1832,  as  I  have  already  said,  was  passed  the  Com- 
promise Act  reducing  the  rates  of  duty. 
Let  us  now  see  how  the  account  stands. 

In  1832  the  tonnage  was  1,439,450 

In  1833  1,601,149 

and  it  went  on  increasing  every  year  until  1837,  when  it 
reached  1,896,685  tons. 

I  remember  it  was  stated  in  1828,  the  year  in  which 
you  took  such  an  active  part  in  the  famous  Harrisburg 
Convention  to  stimulate  the  government  to  pass  the 
tariff  of  that  year,  that,  in  the  great  commercial  city  of 
New  York,  there  could  not  be  found  a  ship  upon  the 
stocks  in  all  the  numerous  ship-yards  there ;  and  that  to 
every  part  of  the  Union,  where  vessels  are  constructed, 
countermands  had  been  sent  in  cases  where  any  were 
building.  This  statement  may  not  have  been  true  to  the 


166  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

letter,  but  the  falling  off  of  the  tonnage  in  a  single  year  to 
the  extent  of  four  hundred  and  eighty  thousand  five  hun- 
dred and  ninety-four  tons,  (a  circumstance  almost  incred- 
ible, if  it  were  not  proved  by  the  public  documents,)  gives 
to  it  a  sufficient  confirmation. 

I  hope,  however,  that  portion  of  our  nation  connected 
with  the  building  or  navigating  of  vessels,  will  remember 
what  happened  in  1829,  when  they  are  called  upon  to 
give  their  votes  for  candidates,  who  support  high  protective 
duties. 

Your  statements  respecting  the  tonnage  are  so  extra- 
ordinary, I  apprehend  the  printer  of  your  letter  must 
have  fallen  into  a  great  error. 

Speaking  of  your  commencement  in  manufacturing 
you  say — "We  (meaning,  I  suppose,  the  manufacturers  of 
Lowell  and  other  parts  of  Massachusetts,)  came  into  it, 
however,  reluctantly,  and  soon  learned  that  with  the 
transfer  of  our  capital  we  acquired  skill  and  knowledge 
in  the  use  of  it,  and  that  so  far  from  our  foreign  com- 
merce being  diminished,  it  was  increased,  and  that  our 
domestic  tonnage  and  commerce  were  very  soon  quad- 
rupled." 

I  do  not  know  the  exact  period  from  which  you  date, 
but  presume  you  refer  to  1828,  when  you  first  engaged 
in  domestic  manufactures.  The  American  Almanac  states 
the  amount  of  tonnage  for  that  year  to  have  been  one 
million  seven  hundred  and  forty-one  thousand  three 
hundred  and  ninety-one  tons,  and  on  the  thirtieth  of 
June,  1844,  two  million  two  hundred  and  eighty  thousand 
and  ninety-five  tons,  an  increase  of  only  thirty-one  per 
cent,  in  sixteen  years;  whereas,  according  to  your  state- 
ment, it  ought  to  have  been  seven  millions! 

I  infer,  from  your  remarks  upon  our  navigating  interest, 
that  you  disapprove  of  what  you  call  "the  reciprocity 
system,"  which  allows  foreign  vessels  to  enter  our  ports 


TARIFF  OF  1846.  167 

upon  the  same  conditions  accorded  to  American  ships 
entering  the  ports  of  foreign  nations.  If  these  reciprocity 
treaties  are  of  a  comparatively  recent  date,  commencing, 
I  believe,  from  1815,  the  reason  may  be  found  in  the 
illiberal  and  unwise  legislation  of  other  countries.  From 
what  we  know  of  the  enlightened  policy  of  Washington, 
Hamilton,  Madison,  and  nearly  all  our  great  statesmen, 
it  may  be  inferred  they  would  have  approved  of  the 
"reciprocity,"  which  you  would  discard.  Indeed,  the 
first  treaty  of  the  kind  was  made  with  England  by  Mr. 
Madison,  and  is  dated  third  of  July,  1815. 

Thus  we  perceive  that  Great  Britain,  the  most  commer- 
cial and  enlightened  nation  in  Europe,  adopted  it  first; 
the  Netherlands  followed  next.  Later,  came  Denmark 
and  Prussia.  You  think  this  system  does  not  work  well. 
"  Not  long  since  the  foreign  carrying  trade,"  say  you,  "  was 
nearly  all  in  our  own  hands.  Now  the  reciprocity  sys- 
tem, not  including  the  colonies  of  foreign  nations,  gives  to 
foreigners  more  than  one-third  of  all  the  carrying  trade 
of  the  United  States."  Probably  you  have  particular 
reference  to  those  cheaply  navigated  vessels  from  Bremen, 
Hamburg,  and  Sweden,  which  are  so  fast  driving  our  mer- 
chant ships  from  the  ocean.  Would  you  know  how  this 
has  come  to  pass  ?  Turn  to  the  debates  of  Congress,  and 
you  will  find  an  admirable  speech  of  Mr.  Webster's,  to 
which  I  had  the  pleasure  of  listening  in  the  House  of  Repre- 
sentatives at  Washington,  in  1824,  when  he  was  the  cham- 
pion of  free  trade,  and  the  inflexible  opponent  of  the  pro- 
tective system. 

He  was  giving  his  reasons  for  opposing  the  high  duties 
on  iron,  hemp,  canvas,  and  the  other  articles  entering  into 
the  construction  of  a  ship,  in  answer  to  the  arguments  of 
Henry  Clay  and  others ;  when  he  made  an  estimate  of 
what  the  extra  cost  of  a  vessel  would  be,  if  Congress  should 
sanction  the  rates  then  proposed,  amounting,  if  I  remem- 


168  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

der  rightly,  upon  a  ship  of  the  usual  demensions,  from  four 
to  six  thousand  dollars.  He  spoke  of  the  madness  and 
folly  of  such  a  tax,  and  predicted  that  it  would  ruin  our 
ship-owners,  and  that  foreigners  would  take  away  our  car- 
rying trade.  Time  has  proved  the  truth  of  Mr.  Webster's 
predictions,  and  so  it  has  of  all  the  principles  he  laid  down 
in  the  famous  Faneuil  Hall  resolutions,  sustained  by  him 
with  so  much  power  and  eloquence  in  1820. 

Mr.  Webster  and  yourself  were  both,  at  that  period,  the 
advocates  of  free  trade  and  low  duties.  Of  late  years,  at 
any  rate  since  1828,  you  have  sustained  the  protective 
system  with  all  your  energies  and  power.  The  question 
is  often  asked  how  all  the  opinions  upon  political  econ- 
omy, which  you  and  Mr.  Webster  must  be  presumed  to 
have,  adopted  after  long  and  mature  consideration,  could 
all  at  once  have  become  so  changed ;  how  you  could  have 
been  induced  to  abandon  the  great  and  immutable  truths 
so  firmly  established  by  such  great  men  as  Adam  Smith, 
Ricardo,  and  Brougham,  and  become  the  disciples  of  the 
doctrines  of  the  late  Judge  Baldwin  and  Henry  Clay. 

Be  assured  you  cannot  retain  the  foreign  carrying  trade, 
and  a  high  protective  tariff  at  the  same  time.  To  com- 
pete successfully  with  the  cheap  vessels  of  Bremen,  Sweden, 
Hamburg,  and  other  places  in  Europe,  you  must  enact 
laws  to  favor  the  navigating  interest,  not  to  oppress  it  by 
excessive  taxation.  Hamburg  and  Bremen,  you  know, 
are  free  Hanseatic  cities.  Commerce  requires  freedom. 
It  cannot  live  without  it.  Look  at  Rotterdam  and 
Amsterdam,  if  you  wish  to  see  the  effects  of  high  protec- 
tive duties.  Hamburg  is  now  what  Tyre  once  was.  Its 
population,  at  the  time  I  was  there,  in  1840,  was  estimated 
at  one  hundred  and  twenty-five  thousand.  The  import 
and  export  trade  amounted  to  seventy  millions  of  dollars 
per  annum ;  and  what  think  you  was  the  duty  paid  on 
this  sum  ?  It  amounted  to  only  one  hundred  and  fifty 


TARIFF  OF  1846.  169 

thousand  dollars,  about  equal  to  what  is  paid  at  New 
York  on  the  arrival  of  a  Liverpool  or  Havre  packet. 

Do  you  wonder  that  we  should  hear  the  exclamation 
made  every  day  how  New  York  is  falling  off  in  the 
increase  of  its  commerce  and  riches  compared  to  what 
they  might  have  been  under  a  more  enlightened  and  lib- 
eral policy  ?  And  yet,  after  all,  there  is  something  so 
deceptive  in  the  name  of  "  protecting  home  industry," 
that  many  of  the  friends  of  the  protective  system  may  be 
found  amongst  the  most  active  merchants  in  that  city.  I 
am  not  quite  certain  that  the  citizens  of  New  York  could 
not  afford  to  have  a  fire  every  year  nearly  as  destructive 
as  that  of  July  last,  if,  by  that  means,  they  could  be 
relieved  from  the  incubus  of  the  protective  system. 

There  are  a  few  other  statements  made  in  your  letter 
of  the  sixteenth  January,  which  I  arn  unwilling  should  pass 
without  comment ;  but  my  remarks  upon  these  must  be 
deferred  for  my  third  and  concluding  communication. 
I  remain,  very  truly, 

Your  friend  and  ob't  serv't, 

S.  D.  BRADFORD. 
To  the  Hon.  ABBOTT  LAWRENCE,  Boston, 


WEST  KOXBURY,  (near  Boston.) 

February  10th,  1846. 

DEAR  SIR, — In  your  letter  to  Mr.  Rives,  of  the  six- 
teenth of  January,  in  speaking  of  Mr.  Walker's  report, 
you  say — "  it  is  no  other  than  the  adoption  of  ad  valorem 
for  specific  duties,  and  a  reduction  of  the  whole  to  twenty 
per  cent."  In  another  part  of  your  letter  you  call  it  "  a 
total  and  entire  change  of  a  revenue  system,  which  was 
established  with  the  government,  and  has  stood  the  test 
of  experience  through  all  the  trials  of  political  parties  and 
administrations  from  General  Washington  to  Mr.  Polk." 

22 


170  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

Now  I  would  appeal  to  you,  as  a  candid  inquirer  after 
truth,  whether  the  above  be  a  fair  representation  of  the 
case.  How  can  Mr.  Walker's  plan  be  called  "  an  entire 
change,"  when  the  ad  valorem  system  is  as  old  as  the 
American  government ;  and  when  even  last  year,  the 
revenue  arising  from  ad  valorem  duties  exceeded  that 
realized  from  specific  duties ;  although  the  average  of  ad 
valorem  duties  was  twenty-three  per  cent.,  and  the  aver- 
age of  specific  duties  forty-one  per  cent.  ?  If  you  had 
said  that  the  adoption  of  specific  duties,  now  so  much  in 
favor  with  the  protectionists,  because  they  cut  off  importa- 
tions, was  an  innovation  upon  the  system  of  revenue  which 
has  usually  been  adopted,  it  would  have  received  the 
general  assent  of  your  readers. 

The  first  tariff  established  by  the  administration  of 
Washington  is  now  before  me.  It  is  dated  20th  July, 
1790.  The  duties  imposed  by  it  are  in  general  ad 
valorem ;  and  the  rate  on  woollens,  cottons,  silks,  linens, 
and  upon  fabrics  of  a  mixed  character,  is  only  twelve  and 
a  half  per  cent,  ad  valorem.  These  five  descriptions  of 
goods  must  then,  as  since  that  period,  have  constituted 
the  principal  value  of  our  imports.  There  were  a  few 
commodities  on  which  was  imposed  a  duty  of  fifteen  per 
cent,  ad  valorem ;  and  four  articles  were  doomed  to  pay 
twenty  per  cent.,  viz :  coaches  or  chariots,  girandoles,  glass 
and  looking-glasses,  being  no  doubt  considered  luxuries, 
and  therefore  subjected  to  a  higher  duty,  agreeably  to  the 
principle  recognized  in  Mr.  Walker's  last  report.  There 
are  also  specific  duties  on  liquors,  teas,  coffee,  and  some 
other  commodities,  such  as  have  usually  been  taxed  in  this 
way.  It  was  under  this  tariff  that  our  Republic  made 
such  rapid  advances,  and  our  merchants  acquired  such 
large  fortunes.  Our  ships  were  upon  every  sea. 

You  dwell  upon  the  frauds  which  have  been  committed 
upon  the  revenue  heretofore,  and  which  you  think  will 


TARIFF  OF  1846.  171 

be  again;  but  you  do  not  even  allude  to  the  smuggling, 
which  exorbitant  duties  are  sure  to  produce  in  every 
country  which  adopts  them.  You  must  have  read  of  the 
effects  they  have  produced  in  Spain,  and  some  other 
countries  in  Europe.  The  estimate  has  been  made  that 
three-fourths  of  the  whole  foreign  trade  of  Spain  is  in  the 
hands  of  smugglers.  Mr.  McCulloch,  so  frequently  quoted 
by  Sir  Robert  Peel  as  an  authority,  writing  upon  smug- 
gling, remarks — "  It  does  not  originate  in  any  depravity 
inherent  in  man,  but  in  the  folly  and  ignorance  of  legisla- 
tors. To  create,  by  means  of  high  duties,  an  overwhelming 
temptation  to  indulge  in  crime,  and  then  to  punish  men 
for  indulging  in  it,  is  a  proceeding  subversive  of  every 
principle  of  justice.  The  true  way  to  put  down  smuggling 
is  to  render  it  unprofitable." 

Is  this  sound  doctrine,  or  is  it  false  ?  Let  it  be  adopted 
in  the  next  tariff,  and  you  will  have  very  little  cause  in 
future  to  complain  of  "fraudulent  foreigners,"  or  double 
invoices.  The  protectionist  and  the  smuggler  have  a  close 
affinity.  The  one  produces  the  other.  Lord  John  Russell 
recently  said  in  Parliament,  that  "  protection  was  the  bane 
of  agriculture."  It  is  equally  true  that  smuggling  is  the 
bane  of  protection.  The  government  may  commission 
thousands  of  custom-house  officers;  may  line  our  coast 
with  troops;  may  establish  coast  guards  from  Massachu- 
setts to  Florida — but  smuggling  and  defrauding  the  rev- 
enue will  continue  so  long  as  the  duties  are  prohibitive,  or 
exorbitantly  high. 

I  do  not  think  you  are  quite  just  towards  our  southern 
brethren  in  the  account  you  give  of  the  origin  of  what 
you  call  the  "American  system,"  which  you  say  was 
"  forced  upon  the  north,  and  done  for  the  purpose  of 
creating  a  home  market  for  the  products  of  the  soil  of  the 
south  and  west."  At  the  assembling  of  the  Congress 
which  passed  the  tariff  of  1816,  the  public  debt  of  the 


172  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

United  States — principally  incurred  in  the  war  against 
Great  Britain,  which  ended  in  1815 — amounted  to  one 
hundred  and  fifty-eight  millions  of  dollars.  Nearly  all  the 
banks  in  the  Union  had  suspended  specie  payments.  The 
government  was  without  credit,  and  almost  without  rev- 
enue. During  the  war,  a  new  interest  had  grown  up,  viz. : 
the  manufacturing;  and  when  the  Secretary  of  the 
Treasury  was  about  to  prepare  his  report,  or  to  bring  in 
his  budget,  he  was  beset  on  the  one  hand  by  the  manu- 
facturers, and  on  the  other  by  the  merchants  engaged  in 
the  foreign  trade,  who,  notwithstanding  all  their  losses  by 
the  embargo,  non-intercourse,  and  war,  continued  even 
then  to  retain  a  good  part  of  those  riches  they  had  before 
acquired  under  that  system  of  free  trade  and  low  duties 
which  I  attempted  to  describe  in  my  last  communication. 
These  were  the  parties  whose  interests  had  to  be  consid- 
ered by  Congress,  in  enacting  a  new  tariff.  The  high- 
minded  and  patriotic  statesmen  of  the  south,  J.  C.  Calhoun, 
William  Lowndes,  and  others  from  that  section  of  the 
country,  came  forward,  as  they  had  always  done  before, 
and  responded  to  the  necessities  and  wants  of  the  nation. 
Their  means  were  the  least  considerable.  They  had 
suffered  incredible  hardships  and  losses  during  the  war, 
but  they  said  the  honor  of  the  country  must  be  preserved, 
and  they  passed  the  tariff  of  1816 ;  not  so  much,  as  you 
seem  to  suppose,  to  create  a  home  market,  as  to  sustain 
the  credit  of  the  country,  and  to  liquidate  the  enormous 
debt  which  then  oppressed  it. 

That  novel  experiment,  called  "  the  minimums,"  was  at 
this  time  introduced,  because  the  people  of  this  country 
being  then  principally  clothed  in  cotton  fabrics  imported 
from  India,  it  did  not  occur  to  the  wisdom  of  Congress 
that  the  revenue  then  wanted  (about  twenty-three  millions) 
could  be  raised  in  any  other  way.  Such,  I  believe,  is  to 
be  a  true  account  of  the  introduction  of  what  you  call 


TARIFF  OF  1846.  173 

"  the  American  system."  You  would  date  its  birth  from 
1816  ;  I,  from  1828.  You  would  attribute  its  paternity  to 
J.  C.  Calhoun  or  William  Lowndes;  I  would  say  it  was 
unlawfully  begotten  by  Henry  Clay. 

There  is  one  portion  of  your  letter  in  which  I  fully  concur. 
I  allude  to  that  part  in  which,  speaking  of  protection,  you 
remark  that  "  New  England,  and  particularly  Massa- 
chusetts, could  thrive  without  it."  There  can  be  no  doubt 
of  this,  for  it  is  confirmed  by  the  experience  of  all  those 
countries  in  Europe,  which  have  avoided  the  protective 
system. 

In  what  parts  of  the  old  world  have  manufactures  most 
flourished  since  the  peace  of  1815?  The  answer  is,  in 
Switzerland  and  Saxony,  where  there  is  no  protective  duty 
whatever.  The  manufactures  of  Switzerland  can  only  be 
said  to  have  been  established  since  1813 ;  about  the  time 
we  began  to  manufacture  by  power  in  the  United  States ; 
and  now  they  enter  into  competition  with  those  of  Great 
Britain  in  the  markets  of  the  East,  and  are  sent  to  America 
and  Brazil  in  large  quantities. 

As  respects  Saxony,  her  woollen,  cotton,  and  linen  man- 
ufactures have  reached  a  degree  of  perfection  and  cheap- 
ness unequalled  upon  the  continent  of  Europe.  In  the 
manufacture  of  cotton  hosiery,  she  has  deprived  Great 
Britain  of  nearly  all  her  foreign  markets ;  and  the  beaux 
of  Broadway,  who,  when  you  were  engaged  in  the  import- 
ing business,  used  to  appear  clad  in  one  of  Thomas  Shep- 
herd's best,  are  now  clad  in  superfine  from  Saxony. 

In  Austria,  on  the  contrary,  where  the  protective  system 
has  always  prevailed,  the  manufacturers  are  in  a  state  of 
bare  existence.  In  Great  Britain,  the  same  results  have 
been  witnessed  in  the  silk  trade.  It  was,  until  1824,  a 
monopoly.  French  silks  were  prohibited,  but  the  trade  of 
Spitalfields  presented  only  a  succession  of  the  most  ruinous 
bankruptcies,  until  1824,  when  Mr.  Huskinson  reduced  the 


174  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

duty  on  raw  silk  to  three  pence  per  pound,  and  permitted 
French  manufactured  silks  to  be  admitted  for  home  con- 
sumption, at  a  duty  of  thirty  per  cent.  The  usual  effects 
soon  followed.  The  silk  trade  revived  at  once,  and  in  nine 
years  afterwards,  (1833,)  had  more  than  doubled.  "To 
the  prohibitive  system,"  said  Mr.  Huskinson,  "  it  was  to  be 
attributed  that,  in  silk  only,  in  the  whole  range  of  manu- 
factures, are  we  left  behind  our  neighbors."  From  the 
above  remarks,  you  will  perceive  that,  in  my  opinion,  low 
duties  are  most  favorable,  even  for  the  manufacturers 
themselves. 

You  have  made  a  strong  and  animated  appeal  to  the 
people  of  Pennsylvania,  Ohio,  and  other  states,  to  alarm 
their  fears  for  the  safety  of  the  protection  of  their  "  iron, 
coal,  hemp,  cotton  bagging,  sugar,  etc.,  etc."  No  one  can 
mistake  the  object  of  this.  You  would  have  them  to 
understand,  I  suppose,  that  if  they  fail  in  their  duty  of 
protecting  the  cottons  and  woolens  of  New  England,  they 
can  no  longer  expect  the  aid  of  this  section  of  the  country, 
in  protecting  the  manufactures  or  productions  in  which 
they  are  interested.  If,  however,  those  states  are  ready 
to  try  "the  experiment,"  you  add  that  "you,  as  a  citizen 
of  Massachusetts,  are  ready  to  meet  the  result,  which  you 
doubt  not  will  be  found  within  eighteen  months  in  the 
realization  of  all  you  have  predicted."  You  then  add — 
"  We  will  work ;  if  twelve  hours  labor  in  the  twenty-four 
will  not  sustain  us,  we  can  and  will  work  fourteen." 

I  would  be  the  last  person  to  doubt  the  energy  or  perse- 
verance of  New  England,  but  I  may  perhaps  be  permitted 
to  suggest  that,  in  my  opinion,  the  plan  you  have  proposed 
for  meeting  the  frightful  revulsion  you  predict,  in  "the 
failure  of  all  the  banks,"  "the  drain  of  our  coin,"  "the 
surfeit  of  foreign  goods,"  etc.,  appears  a  most  extraordinary 
one.  The  very  nature  of  the  crisis  anticipated  supposes 
an  almost  total  cessation  of  business  transactions.  I  have 


TARIFF  OF  1846.  175 

witnessed  in  Europe,  in  1819,  and  in  1837  to  1842,  the 
most  disastrous  crises  amongst  the  manufacturers,  and  the 
method  they  adopted  to  save  themselves  from  ruin,  was  to 
shorten  the  hours  of  labor,  instead  of  increasing  them. 
Sometimes  they  have  been  compelled  to  dismiss  all  their 
operatives,  and  shut  up  their  mills. 

And  now,  as  respects  the  selfish  and  unaccommodating 
disposition  of  Europe  in  general.  "  You  cannot  discover," 
you  say,  "  that  there  is  a  disposition,  on  the  part  of  a  single 
European  nation,  to  relax  their  stringent  system  of  duties 
on  imports  from  this  country."  If  this  anti-commercial 
spirit  really  exists,  how  was  our  distinguished  and  talented 
ambassador  at  Berlin,  Mr.  Wheaton,  able  to  negotiate  the 
Zollverein  treaty  ?  and  by  whom  was  this  first-born  of  free 
trade  and  reciprocity  strangled  in  the  Senate  of  the  United 
States?  by  the  manufacturers,  or  by  the  advocates  of  a 
more  liberal  system  of  legislation  ?  We  all  know  that  the 
manufacturing  interest  opposed  this  treaty,  as  it  probably 
will  all  others,  founded  upon  a  reciprocal  reduction  of  our 
own  and  foreign  tariffs  to  a  revenue  standard. 

Has  Sir  Robert  Peel  made  no  reduction  in  the  English 
tariff  upon  various  articles  produced  in  this  country  ? 
Has  his  recent  resignation  nothing  to  do  with  an  attempt 
on  his  part  to  greatly  reduce,  or  repeal  altogether  the 
duty  on  corn  ?  We  shall  soon  see.  Would  it  not  be  some- 
thing for  our  grain-producing  states  to  have  their  bread- 
stuffs  admitted,  duty  free,  into  a  country  containing  twenty- 
seven  millions  of  people,  estimated  to  consume  sixty 
millions  of  quarters,  or  four  hundred  and  eighty  millions 
of  bushels  of  corn  per  annum  ?  I  use  the  word  corn  as  it 
is  understood  in  England,  representing  wheat,  and  other 
descriptions  of  grain. 

But  how  can  we  expect  foreign  nations  to  make  us  any 
concessions,  when  we  refuse  to  make  any  to  them  ?  You 
are  aware  that  most  of  the  governments  of  Europe  are 


176  WORKS  OP  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

despotisms.  The  people  have  no  concern  in  making  the 
tariffs  or  the  laws.  In  England,  where  the  people  are 
daily  acquiring  more  power,  they  are  making  unheard-of 
exertions  in  favor  of  free  trade,  I  need  not  remind  you 
what  have  been  the  herculean  labors  of  C.  P.  Villiers, 
Richard  Cobden,  J.  B.  Smith,  John  Bright,  and  a  host  of 
others,  in  the  cause  of  free  trade ;  nor  what  they  have 
accomplished.  All  Europe  is  looking  on  with  amazement 
and  admiration.  Their  ranks  have  been  recently  increased 
by  the  addition  of  Lord  John  Russell,  Lord  Morpeth,  and 
Mr.  Labouchere ;  and  it  is  supposed  Sir  Robert  Peel 
himself  is  only  waiting  a  convenient  opportunity  to  follow 
suit.  Such  changes  are  remarkable,  and  foreshadow  what 
may  be  expected  in  future. 

You  say,  "  I  state  the  fact,  then,  that  exports  will  not 
increase,  in  consequence  of  a  reduction,  or  even  a  total 
repeal  of  the  present  tariff."  I  only  state  my  opinion  that 
your  prediction  will  prove  false.  Already  I  have  shown 
what  was  the  result  in  England,  with  regard  to  the  silk 
trade.  Not  only  was  the  home  consumption,  but  the 
export  also,  doubled  in  nine  years  after  the  reduction  in 
the  duty.  This  view  of  the  subject  is  confirmed  not  only 
by  the  experience  of  our  own  country,  but  by  the  history 
of  other  nations. 

You  have  remarked  that  "but  a  moderate  portion  of 
mankind  have  yet  been  clothed  with  the  healthful  and 
cheap  article  of  cotton,"  and  hence  you  have  predicted 
that  the  consumption  of  that  article  in  this  country  will 
have  reached  four  hundred  millions  of  pounds  in  1856,  a 
considerable  part  of  which  will  have  to  be  exported. 

I,  on  the  other  hand,  would  remind  you,  that  but  "-a 
moderate  portion  "  of  the  people  of  Great  Britain  are  fed 
with  corn  and  butcher's  meat ;  and  that,  in  Ireland  alone, 
we  are  assured  by  a  strong  protectionist  in  the  British 
Parliament,  "  there  are  five  millions  of  people  who  rejoice 


TARIFF  OF  1846.  177 

on  potatoes."  All  these  people  are  in  want  of  the  bread- 
stuffs  and  provisions,  which  can  be  supplied  in  such  vast 
abundance  by  our  brethren  in  the  west ;  and  how  can  you 
venture  to  predict  that  they  cannot  compete  with  foreign 
nations  in  their  productions,  as  you  say  you  have  done 
with  your  cotton  manufactures  ?  Free  trade  has  already 
obtained  the  total  repeal  of  the  duty  on  raw  cotton.  The 
next  steamer  may  bring  us  the  news  of  the  total  repeal  of 
the  duty  on  bread-stuffs ;  and  who  can  doubt  that  ere  long 
there  will  be  a  total  repeal  of  the  provision  laws  ?  * 

It  may  be  considered  as  almost  certain,  especially  if  we 
will  reduce  our  tariff  to  a  revenue  standard,  as  recom- 
mended by  Mr.  Walker. 

Let  this  be  once  done,  so  that  we  may  import  freely  the 
productions  of  other  nations,  and  instead  of  our  having  to 
intercede  with  the  governments  of  those  countries,  their 
own  people  would  do  the  work  for  us,  as  soon  as  they 
began  to  experience  the  difficulty  of  getting  back  their 
returns.  This  is  the  plan  recommended  by  the  first  polit- 
ical economists  of  Great  Britain,  who  are  now  perfectly 
satisfied  that  their  country  has  become  great  and  powerful, 
and  acquired  its  great  preeminence  in  manufactures,  not 
in  consequence  of  protection,  but  in  spite  of  it. 

Go  from  one  end  of  Europe  to  the  other,  as  I  have  done, 
and  hear  the  opinion  the  wisest  statesmen  and  most  intel- 
ligent merchants  express  of  American  legislation,  espe- 
cially as  respects  our  commercial  policy,  and  our  paper 

*  This  third  letter  to  Mr.  Lawrence  was  handed  to  the  Editors  of  the  Post  on  the 
18th  of  February,  for  insertion  the  next  day.  Late  on  the  evening  of  the  same 
day,  the  Cunard  Steamer  Cambria  arrived  at  Boston,  in  fourteen  days  from  Liverpool, 
with  the  tidings  that,  on  the  27th  of  January,  Sir  Robert  Peel  had  brought  a  bill 
into  Parliament,  repealing  not  only  the  corn,  but  the  provision  laws  also  ;  so  that 
the  same  number  of  the  Post  that  contained  the  prediction  concerning  those  laws, 
comprised  a  copy  of  the  bill  which  had  been  introduced  for  their  repeal.  This  bill 
was  soon  after  passed  by  Parliament ;  has  not  been  essentially  altered  since ;  and1 
under  it  the  exports  of  Great  Britain  have  increased  from  forty-seven  millions  of 
pounds  sterling  in  1846,  to  about  one  hundred  and  twenty-seven  millions  in  1857. 

23 


178  WORKS  OF  S.  D  BRADFORD. 

money  currency.  You  will  find  it  anything  but  flattering. 
But  you  are  satisfied  with  the  protective  system,  and 
its  "illustrations/'  you  inform  Mr.  Rives,  "  are  so  striking  in 
every  department  of  labor,  that  those  who,  fifteen  years 
ago,  were  the  strongest  opponents  among  us,  have  given 
up  their  theories,  and  acknowledge  that  the  revelations 
are  such  as  to  satisfy  the  most  sceptical." 

You  refer,  I  presume,  especially  to  certain  citizens  of 
Boston,  who,  having  been  free  traders  in  1831,  are  now 
protectionists;  and  what  you  state  is,  unfortunately,  too 
true.  We  all  remember  Irving's  amusing  story  of  Rip- 
Van-Winkle,  who,  having  had  a  sleep  of  twenty  years  in 
the  Kaatskill  mountains,  when  he  returned  to  his  native 
village  on  the  Hudson,  was  so  changed  that  no  one  knew 
him,  and  that  "  troops  of  strange  children  ran  at  his  heels, 
hooting  after  him."  This  must  have  been  a  great  altera- 
tion indeed.  But  if  those  free  traders  just  mentioned, 
will  only  refer  to  the  principles  they  advocated  once,  or 
go  back  to  the  famous  Faneuil  Hall  resolutions,  to  which 
you  yourself  were  a  party,  and  compare  them  with  the 
doctrines  they  advocate  now,  they  will  find  the  change 
quite  as  great  as  was  that  of  Rip-Van- Winkle.  Rip  im- 
puted his  metamorphose  to  a  certain  intoxicating  draught. 
"That  flagon  last  night,"  said  Rip,  "has  addled  my  poor 
head  sadly."  Perhaps  those  ci-devant  free-traders,  but 
now  protectionists,  have  had  their  "poor  heads  addled," 
by  extravagant  dividends  of  twenty  to  thirty  per  cent,  per 
annum. 

But  there  are  many  exceptions  to  your  remark,  even  in 
Boston.  I  have  not  changed ;  and  the  more  I  compare  the 
condition  of  my  own  country  with  that  of  others  in  which 
I  have-  travelled  or  resided,  the  more  I  am  convinced  of 
the  injurious  effects  of  the  protective  system.  There  was 
a  period  when  our  opinions  were  the  same,  and  we  acted 
in  concert.  You  and  I  began  life  nearly  at  the  same  time. 


TARIFF  OF  1846.  179 

We  launched  our  barks  upon  the  wide  and  uncertain 
ocean  of  commerce,  it  might  be  said,  on  the  same  day. 
For  many  years  we  sailed  along,  almost  always  in  sight  of 
one  another.  The  best  and  kindest  feelings  always 
prevailed  between  us.  We  felt  there  was  sufficient 
room  for  all.  Some  time  about  1828,  you  decided,  to  use 
a  simile  of  your  own,  to  "  take  an  observation  and  a  new 
departure."  In  process  of  time  you  have  become,  par 
excellence,  the  great  manufacturer,  whilst  I  may  be  said 
only  to  have  contributed  probably  a  larger  sum  to  the 
public  treasury,  during  the  twenty-nine  years  I  have  been 
in  business*,  than  any  individual  of  the  same  age  in  the 
United  States.  The  foundation,  then,  of  your  fortune  was 
laid  in  Leeds,  Huddersfield,  and  Bradford  in  Wiltshire,  and 
not  in  Lowell.  If  you  are  indebted  for  the  larger  part 
of  it  to  the  carding,  roving,  spinning,  and  weaving  of 
cotton,  you  owe  a  respectable  portion  of  it  to  the  scribbling, 
scouring,  slubbing,  and  teasing  of  wool.  I  have  no  fault 
to  find  on  this  account  with  you.  1  would  on  no  account 
speak  invidiously  of  one  for  whom  I  entertain  the  most 
friendly  feelings,  and  whose  energy  and  enterprise  I  so 
much  admire ;  nor  would  I  be  personal  in  my  remarks. 
My  objections  are  to  the  system  itself,  and  to  the  policy  of 
the  government,  which  has  disfigured  this  young  republic 
of  ours,  by  clothing  it  with  the  cast-off  garments  of  Europe, 
in  the  shape  of  protection  and  monopoly. 

Do  what  you  will,  you  cannot  destroy  free  trade,  nor 
retard  its  progress  much  longer.  Its  course  is  "  upward 
and  onward."  It  is  being  adopted  by  the  nation  which 
General  Cass  informs  us  "  possesses  already  one-seventh 
of  the  whole  earth,  and  whose  government  rules  over 
one-eighth  of  all  the  inhabitants  of  the  globe."  It  has 
recently  overthrown  the  strongest,  and,  in  my  opinion, 
the  best  ministry  which  has  existed  in  England  for  a 
long  time,  because  they  hesitated  to  repeal  the  corn  law. 


180  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

It  will  overthrow  the  next  probably,  unless  they  will 
agree  to  remove  the  restrictions  on  provisions,  and  also 
on  tea,  coffee,  and  sugar.  It  is  destined  to  change  the 
fiscal  regulations  of  the  whole  world.  The  opinion  is 
becoming  almost  universal,  that,  when  Great  Britain  shall 
adopt  a  scale  of  duties,  founded  on  a  true  revenue  princi- 
ple, the  tariffs  of  all  other  nations  will  soon  fall  before  it. 
It  does  not  ask  whether  the  industrious  but  suffering  oper- 
ative dwells  in  the  mountains  of  Switzerland,  or  upon  the 
steppes  of  Russia.  Its  philanthropy  is  expansive.  It 
embraces  the  whole  world.  It  assists  the  deserving,  and 
relieves  the  wants  of  the  suffering,  wherever  they  may  be 
found.  It  is  the  herald  of  peace  and  civilization.  Free 
trade  may  be  compared  to  an  Alpine  plant.  It  is  healthy 
and  hardy,  and  survives  the  concussions  of  the  severest 
tempests^  for  it  depends  on  itself  alone  for  support.  Pro- 
tection is  a  hot-house  plant,  always  kept  alive  at  a  great 
expense,  often  sickly,  and  requiring  constant  attention. 
What  wise  legislator  would  hesitate  to  which  he  should 
give  the  preference  ? 

I  remain,  very  truly, 

Your  friend  and  ob't  serv't, 

S.  D.  BRADFORD. 
To  the  Hon.  ABBOTT  LAWRENCE,  Boston. 


PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  FANEUIL  HALL  MEETING, 

IN  THE  TEAR   1820. 

THE  famous  Faneuil  Hall  resolutions,  of  1820,  having 
been  alluded  to  in  one  of  the  letters  forming  a  part  of 
the  present  correspondence,  and  so  many  years  having 
elapsed  since  their  first  publication,  it  has  been  deemed 
proper  to  have  them  annexed  to  the  present  publication. 
They  are  now,  therefore,  given  with  a  part  of  "the 


TARIFF  OF  1846.  181 

record  "  of  the  different  meetings  of  the  merchants  which 
preceded  them, 

At  a  numerous  meeting  of  the  merchants  and  others, 
interested  in  the  prosperity  of  the  commerce  and  agricul- 
ture of  the  State  of  Massachusetts  and  of  the  United 
States,  convened  at  Concert  Hall,  in  the  town  of  Boston, 
the  17th  day  of  August,  1820,  to  take  into  consideration 
a  communication  from  the  Chamber  of  Commerce,  of  Phil- 
adelphia,— 

The  Hon.  WILLIAM  GRAY  in  the  chair,  WILLIAM  FOSTEB, 
Jr.,  Secretary, — 

Voted,  That  the  Hon.  WILLIAM  GRAY,  JOHN  PARKER,  Esq., 
and  WILLIAM  STURGIS,  Esq.,  be  a  committee  of  nomination  to 
designate  and  to  fix  the  number  of  a  committee. 

Voted,  On  the  report  of  the  committee  of  nomination,  that  the 
following  persons  be  a  committee  : 

WILLIAM  GRAY,  LOT  WHEELWRIGHT, 

JAMES  PERKINS,  CALEB  LORING, 

JOHN  DORR,  SAMUEL  A.  WELLES, 

NATHANIEL  GODDARD,  GEORGE  BOND, 

BENJAMIN  RICH,  GEORGE  HALLET, 

ISRAEL  THORNDIKE,  JR.,  SAMUEL  GARDNER, 

WILLIAM  SHIMMIN,  JOSIAH  KNAPP, 

THOMAS  W.  WARD,  ISAAC  WINSLOW, 

WILLIAM  HARRIS,  WINSLOW  LEWIS, 

DANIEL  WEBSTER,  THOMAS   WIGGLESWORTH, 

NATHAN  APPLETON,  JOHN  COTTON, 

ABBOTT  LAWRENCE,  JOHN  PARKER, 

JOSEPH  SEWALL,  WILLIAM  STURGIS. 
JONATHAN  PHILLIPS, 

Voted,  That  a  committee  of  twenty-eight  be  appointed  to  con- 
sider what  measures  are  proper  to  be  pursued,  in  order  to  avert 
the  calamity  which  must  eventually  flow  from  the  passage  of  the 
tariff  bill,  referred  to  the  ensuing  session  of  Congress ;  and  this 
committee  be  invested  with  plenary  powers  to  carry  into  effect 
such  measures  as  may  by  them  be  deemed  most  expedient  on  the 
occasion. 

Voted,  That  this  meeting  be  adjourned  to  the  first  Monday  in 
October  next,  then  to  meet  at  Faneuil  Hall,  at  eleven  o'clock, 
A.  M.,  for  the  purpose  of  receiving  the  report  of  their  committee, 


182  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

and  adopting   such  further   measures   as   the   meeting   may  think 
expedient. 

Provided,  That  this  committee  be  authorized  to  call  the  meeting 
together  at  an  earlier  period,  if  they  should  think  it  necessary. 
Signed,  WILLIAM  FOSTER,  Jr.,  Sec'y. 

Mr.  WEBSTER  having  been  the  first  named  upon  a  com- 
mittee subsequently  appointed  "  to  prepare  and  publish 
an  address/'  is  understood  to  have  been  the  author  of  the 
address,  which  may  be  found  in  the  papers  of  the  day, 
and  also  of  the  following  resolutions  : 

[From  the  N.  E.  Palladium  and  Commercial  Advertiser.} 

GENERAL  MEETING. 

YESTERDAY,  an  adjourned  meeting  on  the  subject  of  the  proposed 
tariff,  was  held  at  Faneuil  Hall,  Hon.  WILLIAM  GRAY,  Chairman, 
and  WILLIAM  FOSTER,  Jr.,  Secretary. 

A  long  and  interesting  report  was  read  from  the  respectable  com- 
mittee appointed  at  a  former  meeting,  which  concluded  with  the 
following  resolves  : 

Resolved, 

1st.  That  we  have  regarded  with  pleasure  the  establish- 
ment and  success  of  manufactures  among  us,  and  consider  their 
growth,  when  natural  and  spontaneous,  and  not  the  effect  of  a 
system  of  bounties  and  protection,  as  an  evidence  of  general 
wealth  and  prosperity. 

2d.  That,  relying  on  the  ingenuity,  enterprise,  and  skill  of  our 
fellow  citizens,  we  believe  that  all  manufactures  adapted  to  our 
characters  and  circumstances  will  be  introduced,  and  extended,  as 
soon  and  as  fast  as  will  promote  the  public  interest,  without  any 
further  protection  than  they  now  receive. 

3d.  That  no  objection  ought  ever  to  be  made  to  any  amount  of 
taxes  equally  apportioned,  and  imposed  for  the  purpose  of  raising 
revenue  necessary  for  the  support  of  government ;  but  that  taxes 
imposed  on  the  people  for  the  sole  benefit  of  any  one  class  of  men 
are  equally  inconsistent  with  the  principles  of  our  constitution, 
and  with  sound  policy. 


TARIFF  OF  1846.  183 

4th.  That  the  supposition  that,  until  the  proposed  tariff,  or 
some  similar  measures  be  adopted,  we  are,  and  shall  be  dependent 
on  foreigners  for  the  means  of  subsistence  and  defence,  is,  in  our 
opinion,  altogether  fallacious  and  fanciful,  and  derogatory  to  the 
character  of  the  nation. 

5th.  That  high  bounties  on  such  domestic  manufactures  as  are 
principally  benefited  by  that  tariff,  favor  great  capitalists  rather 
than  personal  industry,  or  the  owners  of  small  capitals,  and,  there- 
fore, that  we  do  not  perceive  its  tendency  to  promote  national 
industry. 

6th.  That  we  are  equally  incapable  of  discovering  its  beneficial 
effects  011  agriculture,  since  the  obvious  consequence  of  its  adoption 
would  be,  that  the  farmer  must  give  more  than  he  now  does  for  all 
he  buys,  and  receive  less  for  all  he  sells. 

7th.  That  the  imposition  of  duties,  which  are  enormous,  and 
deemed  by  a  large  portion  of  the  people  to  be  unequal  and  unjust, 
is  dangerous,  as  it  encourages  the  practice  of  smuggling. 

8th.  That,  in  our  opinion,  the  proposed  tariff  and  the  princi- 
ples on  which  it  is  avowedly  founded,  would,  if  adopted,  have  a 
tendency,  however  different  may  be  the  notions  of  those  who 
recommend  them,  to  diminish  the  industry,  impede  the  prosperity, 
and  corrupt  the  morals  of  the  people. 

JAMES  T.  AUSTIN,  Esq.,  and  the  Hon.  DANIEL  WEBSTER 
addressed  their  fellow  citizens  in  favor  of  the  report  and  resolves 
in  speeches  which  were  distinguished  for  closeness  of  argument, 
variety  of  illustrations,  and  abundance  of  fact. 

The  report  was  then  accepted,  and  the  resolves  recommended 
by  the  committee,  unanimously  passed. 

A  vote  of  thanks  to  the  Hon.  Mr.  OTIS,  of  the  Senate,  and  to 
those  members  from  this  state,  in  the  House  of  Representatives  of 
the  United  States,  who  opposed  the  new  tariff,  was  unanimously 
agreed  to. 

The  report,  constituting  the  preamble  to  the  above  resolutions, 
is  too  long  for  insertion  this  day,  forming  twenty-three  manuscript 
pages.  It  is  to  be  printed  in  a  pamphlet. 


NAOMI; 

OR,      BOSTON     TWO     HUNDRED     YEARS     AGO. 

THIS  is  the  title  of  a  book  recently  published,  and 
understood  to  have  been  written  by  a  lady  belonging  to 
Boston  or  its  vicinity.  It  is  intended  to  portray  the 
manners,  feelings,  and  customs  of  the  above-named  city, 
in  or  about  the  year  1660 ;  especially  the  intolerance  of 
its  people  towards  the  Quakers ;  whose  persecution  at 
that  early  period  of  our  history,  and  by  persons,  too,  who 
assigned,  as  their  principal  reason  for  coming  to  this  west- 
ern wilderness,  (as  it  was  truly  called  in  those  days,)  the 
desire  of  escaping  from  the  persecution  of  Europe,  and  of 
worshipping  God  according  to  the  dictates  of  their  con- 
science, has  always  been  considered  so  disgraceful  in  the 
conduct  of  the  early  Puritans. 

The  writer  is  evidently  one,  who  has  acquired  many  of 
the  graces  of  composition,  especially  in  describing  natural 
scenery,  and  the  effects  produced  on  external  nature  by 
the  revolution  of  the  seasons.  The  book  also  gives  evi- 
dence of  a  familiar  acquaintance  with  the  early  history  of 
our  ancestors,  and  of  the  characteristics  by  which  they 
were  most  distinguished.  It  has  been  often  said,  that,  in 
the  composition  of  a  letter  or  work  of  any  kind,  the  most 
difficult  part  was  the  commencement ;  but  the  writer  of 
this  pleasant  book  cannot  have  found  it  so,  as  the  two  first 
chapters,  giving  an  account  of  Naomi's  arrival  and  settle- 
ment at  the  house  of  her  step-father,  "  on  the  south  side 


PECULIARITIES  OF  BOSTON.  185 

of  what  is  now  called  Washington  street/'  are  written 
with  an  ease  and  elegance,  and  the  semblance  of  one 
relating  an  undoubted  historical  fact,  which  have,  it  is 
believed,  been  seldom  surpassed.  The  characters  of 
Naomi,  of  Faith,  of  Mr.  Aldersay,  Herbert,  the  reverend 
Mr.  Wilson,  the  reverend  John  Norton,  and  last,  though 
not  least,  of  Sambo,  all  claim  the  attention  of  the  reader, 
and  will  reward  a  careful  perusal. 

Some  persons,  perhaps,  especially  the  young  and  inex- 
perienced, having  read  the  book,  will  lay  it  down  and 
exclaim,  Could  the  inhabitants  of  Boston  have  ever  been 
the  hypocritical,  illiberal,  exclusive,  aristocratic  and  intol- 
erant people  they  are  represented  to  have  been  by  the 
writer  of  Naomi  ?  Could  they  have  ever  proscribed  their 
fellow  citizens,  of  unblemished  character  and  excellent 
life,  merely  because  they  differed  with  them  upon  the 
subjects  of  religion  and  politics  ?  Can  it  be  that  the  great 
and  eminent  men  there  were  ever  like  Mr.  Aldersay,  "  a 
zealous  church  member,"  "  a  magistrate,"  "  a  keen  detector 
of  heresy  of  opinion,"  "  having  the  outside  demeanor  of 
sanctification,"  and  yet  stained  with  "  those  mean  and 
grovelling  propensities  which  are  honored  because  wealth 
and  luxury  attend  them ; "  and  who,  under  the  garb  of 
humility,  "  carried  an  expression  upon  his  brow  that  ever 
said,  There  is  between  us  an  immeasurable  gulf;  stand 
thou  aside,  I  am  holier  than  thou  ?  "  But,  however  bold 
the  assertion  may  appear  to  some,  it  is  believed  that  there 
is  the  most  undoubted  evidence  to  prove  that  what  Boston 
was  in  1660,  it  continues  to  be  in  1848,  and  that  the  same 
exclusive  and  uncharitable  feelings  continue  to  fill  the 
hearts  of  the  people,  and  to  control  their  conduct.  No 
doubt  some  will  smile  at  this — that  any  one  should  ven- 
ture to  affirm  that  the  capital  of  the  Bay  State  is  essen- 
tially now  the  same  it  was  in  1660.  To  such  may  be 
addressed  the  words  of  Horace  : 


186  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

"  Quid  rides  ?  mutato  tempore,  de  te 
Fabula  narratur." 

It  may  be  true  that  this  spirit  does  not  exhibit  itself 
under  the  same  form.  Time  and  circumstances  may  have 
changed  the  objects,  against  which  it  is  directed.  It  is 
impossible,  for  instance,  to  persecute  the  Quakers,  because 
it  is  not  known  that  a  single  member  of  that  drab-coated 
sect  can  now  be  found  within  the  precincts  of  the  tri- 
mountain  city.  It  would  be  also  a  fruitless  undertaking 
to  attempt  to  drive  out  or  banish  the  Roman  Catholics, 
the  Calvinists,  Episcopalians,  or  the  Unitarians,  because 
each  denomination  has  become  formidable  by  its  num- 
bers, its  wealth,  and  its  power.  All  this  may  be  admitted 
readily ;  but  it  does  not  prove  that  the  spirit  which  ani- 
mated the  Reverend  John  Norton  in  1660,  has  ceased  to 
exist ;  or  that  Christian  charity  and  love  have  taken  the 
places  of  exclusiveness  and  uncharitableness.  In  confir- 
mation of  this  opinion  may  be  adduced  the  severe  and 
unhallowed  zeal  which  is  weekly,  if  not  daily,  displayed 
in  the  religious  publications  of  Boston ;  even  such  as  hold 
the  highest  place  in  the  estimation  of  the  rival  sects 
which  divide  the  community ;  the  Recorder,  the  Chris- 
tian Observatory,  and  the  Christian  Register  ;  which  word 
Christian,  however,  must  not  be  understood,  it  is  pre- 
sumed, in  its  literal  sense.  The  writer  of  Naomi  has  fur- 
nished us  with  a  short  extract  from  one  of  the  addresses  of 
the  Reverend  John  Norton  in  1660,  where  "he  paused 
in  his  sermon,  and  said,  in  a  stern  voice,  '  What  do  you 
here,  children  of  the  devil,  daughters  of  blasphemies,  and 
inheritors  of  lies?'"  but  there  is  reason  to  fear  that  few 
of  the  sermons  of  that  exemplary  divine  have  come  down 
to  posterity.  It  may  be  doubted,  however,  whether  they 
would  have  contained  any  thing  more  bitter,  more 
unchristian,  or  more  severe,  than  four  articles  which  may 
be  found,  not  in  a  religious  publication  of  1660,  but  in 


PECULIARITIES  OF  BOSTON.  187 

the  Christian  Register,  dated  the  15th  January,  1848, 
and  published  at  Boston,  under  the  motto  of  "  Liberty, 
Holiness,  Love,"  and  to  which  it  is  hoped  the  reader  of 
this  may  have  time  and  inclination  to  refer.  Two  of  the 
articles  are  copied  from  the  Recorder  and  Christian  Obser- 
vatory, and  the  remaining  two  are  editorial  on  the  part  of 
the  Register.  No  unprejudiced  person  can  read  these 
ebullitions  of  religious  hatred  and  priestly  spite  without 
admiring,  and  feeling  grateful  also  to  the  founders  of  our 
republic  for  having  withheld  from  the  clergy,  as  a  body, 
all  semblance  of  religious  or  political  power ;  and  no  one, 
who  has  well  considered  the  lessons  taught  by  history, 
can  doubt  that,  if  we  have  any  religious  freedom  at  pres- 
ent, we  owe  it  not  to  any  increase  of  charity  on  the  part 
of  the  clergy  since  the  time  of  Naomi,  in  1660,  but  to 
other  circumstances  altogether. 

In  this  connection  one  need  only  to  refer  to  the  vio- 
lent language  and  proceedings  of  Unitarians  as  respects 
slavery  and  the  Mexican  war,  and  to  the  recreant  spirit 
they  have  recently  manifested  in  yielding  to  the  dictation 
of  their  brethren  in  England,  and  sending  a  memorial 
to  Congress  requesting  our  legislators  to  withdraw  our 
troops  from  the  soil  of  "our  sister  republic,"  "offering 
the  amplest  atonement  in  our  power  for  the  wrongs  we 
have  done  her,"  and  thus  disgracing  the  name  of  our 
country ;  although  the  Honorable  Reverdy  Johnson,  of 
Maryland,  one  of  the  senate,  a  distinguished  lawyer  and 
whig,  and  an  opponent  of  the  present  administration, 
declared  himself,  only  a  few  days  since,  from  his  seat  in 
the  senate  chamber,  in  the  following  words :  "  The  war  is 
just,  because  Mexico  commenced  it.  It  does  exist  by  her 
act ;  and  so  help  me  God,  but  for  this  conviction,  as  I  rev- 
erence truth  and  detest  falsehood,  I  would  never  have 
voted  for  the  act  of  the  15th  of  May,  1846." 

It  is  quite  a  work  of  supererogation  on  the  part  of  our 


188  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

wealthy  men,  giving  and  bequeathing  their  money  to  build 
up  a  sect,  the  spiritual  guides  of  which  have  thus  abused 
the  functions  of  their  sacred  office.  It  was  announced 
only  in  the  January  number  of  the  Christian  Examiner, 
(the  words  of  one  of  its  editors  are  here  quoted,)  that 
"  at  the  last  annual  meeting  of  the  British  and  Foreign 
Unitarian  Association,  in  London,  a  warm  discussion  arose 
in  consequence  of  a  passage  in  the  report  of  the  com- 
mittee, alluding,  in  friendly  terms,  to  an  invitation  which 
had  been  sent  from  this  city,  (Boston,)  to  our  English 
brethren  to  attend  our  anniversary  meetings.  The  invita- 
tion proceeded  from  a  few  individuals,  but  was  unhappily 
supposed  to  have  emanated  from  the  American  Unitarian 
Association,  which  had  committed  the  offence  of  including 
a  slaveholder  in  the  number  of  its  vice-presidents."  It  is 
well  known  what  exertions  the  Unitarians  are  making  to 
increase  the  number  of  their  converts  in  the  southern 
states,  where  their  peculiar  belief  is  considered  as  amongst 
the  deadly  sins  ;  and  where,  having  gained  over  the  distin- 
guished jurist,  Judge  Wayne,  of  Georgia,  they  were 
probably  anxious  to  stimulate  his  zeal  in  the  cause  by 
conferring  upon  him  the  honor  of  being  enrolled  amongst 
their  vice-presidents  ;  and  this  is  understood  to  have  been 
the  cause  of  the  severe  reprimand  they  have  received  at 
the  meeting  in  London.  From  this  it  may  be  inferred 
that  the  spirit  of  exclusiveness  is  not  confined  to  Boston, 
but  has  crossed  the  Atlantic.  It  remains  to  be  seen  what 
order  will  be  taken  in  relation  to  this  proceeding.  It  is 
hoped  that  there  will  be  more  firmness  and  consistency 
displayed  than  there  has  seemed,  at  any  rate,  to  have  been 
exhibited  in  relation  to  some  matters  nearer  home.  No 
one,  it  is  presumed,  can  have  forgotten  the  violent  discus- 
sions and  recriminations  with  which  the  religious  journals 
and  papers  were  filled,  about  three  years  since,  when  the 
true  faith  was  supposed  to  have  been  attacked.  The 


PECULIARITIES  OF  BOSTON.  189 

preachers  of  the  day  rushed  to  their  pulpits  to  denounce 
the  heresy,  with  all  the  vehemence,  if  not  with  the  elo- 
quence of  Cicero,  when  he  ascended  the  forum  to  denounce 
the  conspiracy  of  Catiline.  It  seemed  almost  a  sin,  for  a 
season,  to  preach  upon  any  other  topic ;  as,  in  the  time  of 
Naomi,  every  faithful  servant  of  the  Lord  was  expected  to 
cry  out  against  the  Quakers.  Recently,  however,  no  more 
is  heard  of  the  heresy ;  although  it  has  never  been 
announced  that  the  heretic  Has  recanted.  Then  the  heresy 
emanated  from  a  hamlet  near  Boston.  Since  then,  its  sup- 
porters have  erected  a  public  altar  in  the  holy  city.  One 
or  two  other  societies  have  been  formed,  where  similar 
opinions  are  advocated ;  and  of  a  class  of  twelve  students, 
who  graduated  in  July  last  at  the  Divinity  School  of 
Harvard  University,  fully  one  half  are  suspected  of  favor- 
ing the  proscribed  doctrines. 

But  too  much  time  has  probably  been  already  devoted 
to  what  may  be  considered  only  one  view  of  the  subject. 
An  exclusive  disposition  has  many  ways  of  exhibiting  itself 
besides  as  relates  to  religion  ;  but,  in  other  respects,  there 
is  great  reason  to  fear  that  Boston  now  is  essentially  the 
same  it  used  to  be.  Even  that  eminent  divine  and  distin- 
guished philanthropist,  the  late  Dr.  Channing,  a  year  or 
two  before  his  death,  when  addressing  his  fellow  citizens, 
pronounced  these  words  :  "  Shall  I  say  a  word  of  evil  of 
this  good  city  of  Boston  ?  Among  all  its  virtues,  it  does 
not  abound  in  a  tolerant  spirit.  The  yoke  of  opinion  is  a 
heavy  one,  often  crushing  individuality  of  judgment  and 
action.  No  city  in  the  world  is  governed  so  little  by  a 
police,  and  so  much  by  mutual  inspection,  and  what  is 
called  public  sentiment."  And,  at  a  later  period,  in  speak- 
ing to  a  friend  and  brother,  in  allusion  to  the  same  subject, 
he  used  these  remarkable  words,  as  true  now  as  in  1660: 

"  No  man,  Mr. ,  can  draw  a  long  breath  in  Boston." 

That  record  stands,  and  cannot  be  blotted  out. 


190  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

If  reference  be  had  to  the  state  of  political  feeling  in 
Boston,  its  intolerance  would  probably  appear  incredible 
to  one  who  had  never  lived  there.  The  late  prime  min- 
ister of  France,  M.  Thiers,  in  his  celebrated  History  of  the 
French  Revolution,  in  allusion  to  the  hatred  which  the 
Spaniards  entertained  towards  Napoleon  and  the  French 
nation,  when  that  country  was  invaded  by  the  imperial 
troops,  recites  a  part  of  a  catechism,  which  the  Spanish 
priests  were  accustomed  to  teach  the  people,  especially  the 
junior  part  of  the  population,  of  which  the  following  is  a 
literal  translation  : 

"  Who  art  thou  ?  A  Spaniard,  by  the  grace  of  God.  Who  is 
the  enemy  of  our  happiness  ?  The  Emperor  of  the  French.  How 
many  natures  has  he  ?  Two  ;  the  one  human,  the  other  diabolical. 
How  many  emperors  have  the  French  ?  One  true  one  in  three 
deceptive  persons.  What  are  they  called  ?  Napoleon,  Murat,  and 
Manuel  Godoi.  Which  of  them  is  the  most  wicked  ?  They  are 
all  equally  bad.  Of  whom  was  Napoleon  born  ?  Of  sin.  Murat  ? 
Of  Napoleon.  And  Godoi  ?  Of  the  fornication  of  the  two.  Is 
there  any  sin  in  killing  a  Frenchman  ?  No  !  my  father,  the  way 
to  gain  heaven  is  to  kill  those  heretical  dogs." 

Now  it  would  not  be,  perhaps,  accurate  to  say  that  in 
Boston  there  is  a  precise  form  of  questions  which  the 
candidate  for  the  favor  and  good  will  of  the  people  is 
called  upon  to  answer  ;  but  yet  it  may  be  truly  asserted 
that  he  is  obliged  to  submit  to  an  ordeal  equally  inquisi- 
torial ;  and  the  catechism  by  which  he  may  be  said  to  be 
examined,  runs  thus: 

"  Who  is  your  father  ?  Do  you  belong  to  a  high  or  a 
low  family  ?  Are  you  acquainted  with  any  of  our  prominent 
people  ?  What  is  your  religion  ;  but  above  all,  what  are 
your  politics  ?  Are  you  a  true  whig  ?  Do  you  hate  and 
detest  democracy  and  the  vulgar  locos  ?  Are  you  in 
favor  of  an  United  States  Bank,  having  a  large  capital 


PECULIARITIES  OF  BOSTON.  191 

to  lend  to  the  manufacturers,  and  which  shall  issue  notes 
having  the  '  odor  of  nationality  ?  '  Do  you  wish  your 
country  to  incur  a  heavy  national  debt,  the  interest  upon 
which  will  be  so  great  as  to  compel  the  country  to  impose 
high  taxes  upon  foreign  imports?  Is  it  your  opinion 
that  the  most  effectual  way  to  raise  a  large  revenue  is 
to  lay  prohibitory  duties  ? "  If  the  candidate  can  answer 
these  questions  in  the  affirmative,  all  other  considera- 
tions are  of  trivial  importance,  and  he  receives  a  free 
pass. 

The  political  course  pursued  by  the  people  of  Boston, 
has  been  a  most  unfortunate  and  peculiar  one  ever  since 
the  commencement  of  the  government  in  1789.     Guided 
by  a  sordid  spirit  of  selfishness,  they  have  opposed  every 
enlightened  plan,  by  which  our   greatest  statesmen  have 
attempted  to  extend  the  limits  of  the  United  States  since 
the   adoption   of  the   constitution ;    beginning  with   the 
acquisition  of  Louisiana,  and  ending   with  that  of  Texas. 
If  their  counsels  had  prevailed,  the  noble  river  of  the 
Mississippi  would,  at  this  moment,  have  been   under  the 
jurisdiction   of  France.     It   was   with   reference  to  this 
magnificent  purchase  by  that  great  man,  Thomas  Jeffer- 
son, that  a  member  of  the  French  chamber  of  deputies, 
in  1835,  during  the  discussion  upon  the  payment  of  the 
indemnity  demanded  with  so  much  determination  by  that 
distinguished  patriot,  President  Jackson,  gave,  as  a  reason 
for  his  refusal   to  vote  the  money,  that  "  he,  for  one,  had 
never  forgiven  America  for   having  acquired  for  so  incon- 
siderable a  sum  the  finest,  most  fertile,  and  most  valuable 
region   of  the  globe."      Yet   the   people  of  Boston  de- 
nounced Mr.  Jefferson  and  the  democratic  party  which 
enabled   him,   against   the  votes   of  the  federalists,   (so 
called  at   that  time)  to  acquire  this  right  arm  of  our  con- 
federacy; and,  at  a  later  date,  they  opposed  with  violence 
the  war  with  Great  Britain,  so  ably   advocated  in  those 


WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

days  by  Henry  Clay,  who  declared  in  Congress  that 
Josiah  Quincy,  the  representative  of  Boston,  and  the 
apologist  of  Great  Britain,  "had  soiled  the  carpet  on 
which  he  stood."  Some  years  after  this,  on  the  receipt 
of  the  news  of  the  lamented  death  of  Jefferson,  Daniel 
Webster  pronounced  an  eulogy  upon  the  patriot  and 
philosopher,  and  the  people  applauded  it ;  thus  confirm- 
ing the  truth  of  a  remark,  made  so  long  since  by  Dr. 
Franklin,  that  "  whatever  one  might  think  of  America 
as  a  country  to  live  in,  it  was  certainly  the  finest  one  to  die 
in  upon  the  globe ;  as  no  sooner  was  a  man  dead  than 
all  the  papers  announced  what  a  good  father,  brother, 
son,  or  patriot  he  was."  Mr.  Webster,  not  long  ago,  in 
a  speech  he  delivered  at  Philadelphia,  pronounced  a 
similar  eulogy  upon  General  Jackson,  calling  him  a 
patriot  and  benefactor  to  his  country,  or  using  words  to 
that  effect.  Such  is  the  power  of  truth  ;  and  sooner  or 
later  its  voice  will  be  heard. 

About  the  same  time,  however,  at  a  meeting  of  the 
common  council  of  Boston,  on  the  19th  June,  1845,  S. 
Abbot  Lawrence,  having  moved  the  passage  of  an  order 
66  to  devise  such  measures  as  may  be  suitable  to  mark  the 
respect  of  the  city  government  for  the  memory  of  General 
Andrew  Jackson,  late  President  of  the  United  States,"  it 
is  stated,  in  the  journals  of  the  day,  that  a  "  considerable 
debate  arose ; "  and  the  result  was,  that  twelve  persons 
were  found  who  actually  voted  against  the  passage  of  the 
order.  Those  persons  Were  Messrs.  Brown,  Cook,  Demerest, 
Gibson,  Green,  Hayden,  Hooper,  Littlehale,  Sampson,  Sea- 
ver,  Thayer,  and  Williams.  It  is  only  necessary  to  name 
them.  All  comment  would  be  quite  superfluous. 

It  may  also  be  mentioned,  that,  whenever  a  new  state 
has  applied  for  admission  to  the  Union,  the  people  of  Bos- 
ton have  always  received  her  with  coldness  and  reluctance^ 
not  as  one  having  a  right  to  become  one  of  the  family,  but 


PECULIARITIES  OF  BOSTON.  193 

as  an  unwelcome  step-sister,  whose  admission  would  dimm- 
ish the  amount  of  the  inheritance. 

It  would  be  an  easy  task  to  trace  the  workings  of  this 
same  exclusive  spirit  in  various  other  ways ;  particularly 
in  the  division  it  has  made  of  the  people  into  numerous 
cliques,  each  jealous  of  the  other,  and  separated  by  lines 
of  demarcation,  which  it  would  be  impossible  to  define  by 
any  rules  or  principles  recognized  by  any  other  city  in  the 
world.  No  person  who  has  watched  the  way  in  which 
they  imitate  the  manners  and  customs  of  the  privileged 
classes  in  Europe,  and  especially  of  England,  can  doubt 
for  a  moment  that,  should  the  various  orders  of  nobility 
be  introduced  here,  as  they  exist  on  the  other  side  of  the 
Atlantic,  there  would  be  a  multitude  of  candidates  for  the 
prizes,  ready  to  cry, 

"  Good-morrow  to  my  sovereign  king  and  queen, 
And  princely  peers  ;  a  happy  time  of  day  !  " 

It  is  not  deemed  expedient,  however,  to  pursue  the  sub- 
ject at  present ;  especially  as,  from  some  intimations  in 
Naomi,  there  is  reason  to  believe  that  the  intolerance  of 
the  literary  emporium,  which  has  thus  been  so  imperfectly 
alluded  to,  has  not  escaped  the  notice  of  the  writer  of  that 
work;  and  that  one  of  the  objects  in  publishing  it  may 
have  been  to  rebuke  it.  On  this  account,  it  is  sincerely 
hoped  that  the  same  lady  will  direct  her  attention  to  the 
subject,  as  the  readers  of  Naomi  feel  assured  that  one  who 
has  so  well  described  what  Boston  was  in  1660,  could  not 
fail  in  giving  to  the  public  a  true  and  interesting  picture 
of  what  it  is  in  1848. 

PILGBIMENSIS. 
25 


HONORABLE   BENJAMIN   F.  BUTLER, 

OF   NEW  YORK. 

A  LECTURE  was  delivered  at  the  Temple  in  Boston,  on 
Wednesday  evening  week,  by  the  above-named  gentleman, 
before  the  Mercantile  Library  Association.  It  occupied 
an  hour  and  a  half,  and  was  listened  to  by  a  numerous 
auditory  with  profound  attention  and  delight.  Such  of 
the  persons  present  as  were  personally  acquainted  with 
the  learned  and  accomplished  lecturer,  who  possessed  a 
knowledge  of  the  exalted  place  he  holds  as  a  member  of 
the  New  York  bar,  or  who  remembered  the  distinguished 
talents  he  displayed  as  a  statesman,  when  connected  with 
the  administration  of  President  Van  Buren,  were  fully 
prepared  to  expect  a  performance  of  great  brilliancy  and 
power;  and  yet,  it  may  be  truly  affirmed,  that  even  their 
anticipations  were  more  than  realized.  The  subject,  most 
happily  chosen  by  Mr.  Butler,  was  "  The  Anti-Federalists 
of  the  Olden  Time,"  which  must  be  understood,  however, 
to  refer  to  a  part  only  of  the  eminent  patriots  and  sages, 
who  were  members  of  the  convention  which  assembled  in 
Philadelphia  in  1787,  for  forming  the  present  constitution 
of  the  United  States.  It  was  well  known,  the  lecturer 
remarked,  that  great  diversity  of  opinion  existed  in  the 
convention,  upon  the  various  provisions  proposed  to  be 
introduced  into  that  instrument,  and  that  many  of  the 
delegates  had  received  the  most  stringent  instructions  from 
their  constituents,  in  relation  to  the  votes  they  might  be 


DEMOCRATS  OF  1776.  195 

called  upon  to  give.  Such  instructions  might  always  be 
considered  as  imperative  and  obligatory  upon  the  repre- 
sentative, whenever  the  action  upon  a  measure  is  final  and 
irrevocable ;  but,  in  the  assembly  at  Philadelphia,  the  mem- 
bers were  called  upon  to  pass  upon  an  instrument  which 
was  to  be  afterwards  laid  before  the  people  for  their 
acceptance  or  rejection,  on  which  account,  there  is  reason 
to  believe,  that  several  ventured  to  give  their  assent  to  it, 
contrary  to  the  directions  tHey  had  received  from  their 
constituents.  The  people  were  much  attached  to  the  con- 
stitution of  1778,  under  which  they  were  then  living;  and 
the  prevailing  opinion  was,  not  that  a  new  one  would  be 
proposed,  but  that  the  old  one  would  be  new  modelled,  and 
invested  with  enlarged  powers.  When,  therefore,  it  was 
decided  by  the  majority  of  the  convention  to  adopt  an 
entirely  new  constitution,  some  of  the  delegates  felt  that 
they  had  not  permission  or  power  to  give  their  assent,  par- 
ticularly as,  in  their  opinion,  it  was  wanting  some  of  the 
safeguards  of  civil  liberty,  which  they  considered  as  of 
vital  importance,  and  especially  as  it  contained  no  pro- 
vision for  the  freedom  of  religion,  of  speech,  or  of  the 
press;  and  had  altogether  omitted  that  stipulation  so  dear, 
from  that  day  to  this,  to  the  heart  of  every  anti-federalist, 
that  "  the  powers  not  delegated  to  the  United  States  by 
the  constitution,  nor  prohibited  by  it  to  the  states,  are 
reserved  to  the  states  respectively,  or  to  the  people." 
Indeed,  it  did  not  contain  a  bill  of  rights.  Even  Hamil- 
ton, who  labored  so  strenuously,  and  in  connection  with 
Messrs.  Madison  and  Jay,  wrote  so  much  and  so  power- 
fully to  render  the  constitution  palatable  to  the  people,  in 
the  eighty-fourth  number  of  the  Federalist,  (particularly 
mentioned  by  Mr.  Butler,)  admitted  those  defects,  which 
it  was  impossible  to  conceal ;  adding,  in  his  forcible  lan- 
guage, "I  never  expect  to  see  a  perfect  work  from 
imperfect  man."  Under  these  circumstances,  fourteen 


196  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

members  actually  withdrew  from  the  convention,  and 
refused  to  sanction  the  new  constitution  by  their  signa- 
tures. This  number  comprised  many  of  the  most  eminent 
patriots  and  statesmen  of  the  day,  constituting,  in  fact, 
the  founders  of  the  anti-federal  party,  which  has  existed 
in  the  United  States  from  1787  to  the  present  time ;  and 
it  is  only  necessary,  said  Mr.  Butler,  to  study  the  records 
and  proceedings  of  those  days  with  impartiality  and  care, 
to  be  convinced,  not  only  of  the  unsullied  purity  of  the 
lives,  and  of  the  patriotism,  which  actuated  the  conduct 
of  the  anti-federalists,  but  also  to  be  carried  to  the  conclu- 
sion, that,  but  for  their  exertions  in  the  cause,  the  consti- 
tution could  have  never  been  adopted,  and  that  thus  our 
glorious  Union  might  have  never  been  formed. 

In  nearly  all  the  thirteen  states  of  the  old  confederacy, 
the  new  constitution,  when  proposed  to  the  people  in  their 
conventions  for  adoption,  was  received  with  coldness  and 
distrust,  especially  in  Massachusetts,  which,  at  that  early 
period  of  our  history,  possessed  such  a  controlling  influ- 
ence, and  was  so  looked  up  to  by  her  sister  states,  many  of 
which  refused  to  act  definitively,  until  they  had  received 
the  decision  of  Massachusetts.  When  the  convention 
assembled  at  Boston,  it  was  soon  found  that  the  friends  of 
adoption  were  in  a  hopeless  minority ;  and,  after  a  pro- 
tracted discussion,  the  vote  was  about  to  pass  in  the  nega- 
tive, when  John  Hancock  came  to  the  rescue,  and,  by  a 
fortunate  suggestion,  understood,  however,  to  have  been 
previously  agreed  upon  by  himself  and  the  other  leaders 
of  the  anti-federalists,  saved  this  palladium  of  American 
freedom  and  happiness.  Mr.  Hancock  readily  admitted  the 
various  defects  of  the  instrument,  which  had  also  been 
pointed  out  by  Elbridge  Gerry,  and  other  patriots  in  the 
convention,  but  suggested  it  would  be  best  to  adopt  it 
notwithstanding,  with  the  addition,  however,  of  certain 
amendments,  securing  those  great  principles  of  civil 


DEMOCRATS  OF  1776.  197 

and  religious  liberty,  which  have  been  already  mentioned. 
His  proposition  was  seconded  by  Samuel  Adams,  and  thus, 
through  the  interposition  of  these  two  anti-federalists,  the 
constitution  was  adopted  by  a  small  majority.  It  was 
soon  afterwards  accepted  by  New  Hampshire,  which  had 
been  apparently  waiting  the  action  of  Massachusetts,  but 
with  the  same  condition,  as  respected  the  amendments, 
which  were  to  be  recommended  for  adoption  to  the  first 
Congress,  which  should  be  assembled  under  the  new  act  of 
Union.  The  great  state  of  New  York  soon  followed  New 
Hampshire,  but  not  until  after  long  and  laborious  discus- 
sions, in  which  the  two  Clintons  took  part  against  the 
adoption,  as  the  instrument  then  stood,  and  which  was 
finally  carried  by  a  majority  of  only  three  votes.  It  was 
even  proposed,  by  some  of  the  leading  politicians  of  the 
day,  in  New  York,  to  invite  the  other  states  to  call  a  new 
general  convention,  which  suggestion,  had  it  succeeded, 
must  have  proved  fatal  to  the  constitution  which  we  now 
possess.  The  leader  of  the  opposition  in  Virginia  was  the 
celebrated  Patrick  Henry,  whose  eloquence,  during  the 
debates  upon  the  subject,  is  said  to  have  been  never  sur- 
passed, if  indeed,  it  had  been  ever  equalled.  It  is  asserted 
by  his  biographer,  that  he  even  surpassed  himself;  and 
the  lecturer  mentioned  that  Mr.  Wirt  had  stated  that 
Henry,  upon  this  occasion,  availed  himself  one  day  of  a 
violent  storm  of  thunder  and  lightning,  which  occurred 
during  the  description  he  was  giving  of  the  ruin  which 
would  fall  upon  the  country,  if  the  constitution  should  be 
adopted  as  it  then  was,  in  a  manner,  and  with  a  power  so 
terrific  that  the  members  of  the  convention  could  not 
endure  it,  but  actually  arose  from  their  seats  before  the 
regular  hour  of  adjournment,  and  left,  in  a  body,  the  house 
where  they  had  been  assembled.  Edmund  Randolph  was 
another  of  the  distinguished  patriots  in  Virginia,  who 
spoke  and  voted  on  the  same  side  with  Patrick  Henry. 


198  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

At  length,  however,  an  anti-federalist,  who  had  heretofore 
opposed  the  adoption  of  the  instrument  as  it  was,  proposed 
a  similar  expedient  to  that  which  had  proved  so  successful 
in  Massachusetts,  and  thus,  gaining  the  support  of  the 
majority  of  his  party,  was  able  to  secure  the  adoption  of 
the  constitution  in  the  Old  Dominion.  Mr.  Jefferson  was 
in  Paris  at  the  time,  but  was  kept  advised  of  the  proceed- 
ings of  his  friends  in  Virginia,  and  approved  the  amend- 
ments, without  which  it  was  his  decided  opinion  the 
constitution  ought  not  to  be  accepted  by  his  native  state. 
Some  letters  of  his  have  been  published,  confirming  this 
view  of  the  subject.  It  might  almost  appear,  said  Mr.  But- 
ler, to  be  an  act  of  the  retributive  justice  of  heaven  that  two 
citizens  of  Boston,  John  Hancock  and  Samuel  Adams, 
whom  George  III.  had  denounced  as  traitors,  should  have 
had  the  glory  and  honor  of  acting  so  conspicuous  a  part 
in  the  establishment  of  a  constitution  under  which  the 
United  States  have  become  so  great  and  powerful.  The 
lecturer  then  gave  a  most  interesting  account  of  the  pro- 
ceedings of  the  several  conventions  in  the  other  states,  and 
displayed  a  knowledge  of  the  transactions  of  those  days, 
which  to  some  persons  might  appear  almost  incredible, 
unless  the  lecturer  had  devoted  his  whole  life  to  the  con- 
sideration of  the  subject. 

In  this  part  of  his  address,  he  paused  to  bestow  a  beau- 
tiful and  well  merited  eulogium  upon  Washington,  and 
dwelt,  for  a  moment,  upon  the  "almost  superhuman 
wisdom  "  of  the  Father  of  his  Country,  in  the  selection  of 
the  members  of  his  first  cabinet.  He  said  it  was  worth  a 
journey  to  Boston  at  any  time,  to  have  an  opportunity  of 
contemplating  the  character  of  Washington  in  this  new 
point  of  view,  which  had  not,  so  far  as  he  could  judge, 
been  duly  appreciated  by  others.  Sensible  that  the  new 
constitution  was  received  with  distrust  by  many  of  the 
states,  and  that  certain  of  its  provisions  were  not  approved 


DEMOCRATS  OF  1776.  199 

by  some  of  the  best  men  in  the  nation,  Washington  had  a 
proper  regard  to  this  feeling,  and  called  to  his  councils 
Thomas  Jefferson  and  Edmund  Randolph,  one  as  Secretary 
of  State,  and  the  other  as  Attorney-General,  both  anti- 
federalists,  and  known  to  be  opposed  to  the  adoption  of 
the  constitution  without  the  amendments.  Such  a  course 
could  not  fail  to  conciliate  the  favor  of  the  opposition. 

In  speaking  of  Washington,  Mr.  Butler  was  more  ani- 
mated than  ever.  There  Was  a  beauty,  as  well  as  a  force 
in  his  language,  which  his  hearers  will  not  soon  forget.  It 
was  easy  to  perceive  that  he  had  not  studied  the  eloquent 
productions  of  Patrick  Henry  in  vain.  As  an  additional 
proof  how  highly  esteemed  and  beloved  were  the  anti-fed- 
eralists of  those  days,  mention  was  made  by  Mr.  Butler,  of 
the  high  offices  of  power  and  trust  conferred  upon  them 
by  the  people.  John  Hancock,  Samuel  Adams,  and 
Elbridge  Gerry  were  chosen  governors  of  Massachusetts, 
and  the  latter,  in  1813,  was  elected  Vice-President  of  the 
United  States.  The  two  Clintons,  in  New  York,  were  also 
elected  governors  of  the  state.  In  Virginia,  the  three 
individuals  who  were  amongst  the  most  active  in  opposi- 
tion to  the  constitution,  were  James  Monroe,  afterwards 
President  of  the  United  States,  and  Messrs.  Harrison  and 
Tyler,  whose  sons,  some  years  later,  were  also  honored 
with  the  highest  place  in  the  gift  of  the  people.  It  had 
not  always  been  the  custom,  Mr.  Butler  remarked,  to  speak 
of  these  great  and  eminent  men,  as  they  deserve ;  and 
even  the  anti-federalists  of  the  present  day,  the  descend- 
ants of  such  virtuous  and  patriotic  ancestors,  did  not  seem 
always  to  duly  appreciate  the  wisdom,  patriotism,  and  good- 
ness, which  distinguished  their  lives  and  characters.  He 
earnestly  hoped,  therefore,  that  they  would  all  read  the 
proceedings  of  the  convention  in  Philadelphia,  which  were 
not  published  till  1819,  and  of  the  state  conventions,  that 
they  might  realize,  as  they  should,  to  whom  they  are  in 


200  WORKS  OF  8.  D.  BRADFORD. 

truth  indebted,  for  the  glorious  constitution  under  which 
we  live,  and  have  acquired  so  high  a  rank  among  the 
nations  of  the  earth.  Mr.  Butler  concluded  his  lecture 
at  nine  o'clock,  and  took  his  leave  amidst  loud,  hearty,  and 
prolonged  plaudits. 

It  was  gratifying  to  witness  such  a  full  attendance  on 
the  part  of  the  young  men  of  Boston,  who  are  destined 
soon  to  mark  the  future  character  of  the  city.  All 
attempts  to  change  the  views  of  the  members  of  the  Hart- 
ford Convention,  or  Essex  junto,  by  any  arguments  or 
proofs,  however  incontrovertible,  would  be  a  hopeless 
undertaking;  but,  fortunately  for  the  fame  of  the  capital 
of  Massachusetts,  its  political  reputation  will  hereafter 
depend  upon  another,  and,  we  trust,  a  different  race  of 
persons. 

UN'  AUDITORE. 


GENERAL   JACKSON   AND   THEODORE 
f        ,  PARKER.  > 

[THE  following  interesting  correspondence  puts  to  rest  the  charge  lately  brought 
against  General  Jackson,  of  having  been  a  "  slave  dealer,"  in  the  sense  intended 
by  Mr.  Parker.  The  friends  of  the  noble  old  general  will  feel  grateful  to  Mr. 
Bradford  for  his  prompt  exposure  and  effectual  refutation  of  the  misstatement 
contained  in  Mr.  Parker's  address. — Boston  Post.] 

WEST  KOXBURY,  (near  Boston,) 

8th  June,  1848. 

SIR, — In  reading  a  letter  of  yours  "  to  the  people  of 
the  United  States,  touching  the  matter  of  slavery/'  pub- 
lished at  Boston  during  the  last  winter,  my  attention  was 
particularly  drawn  to  a  statement  made  by  you  upon  the 
fortieth  page,  in  the  following  words :  "  General  Jackson 
was  a  dealer  in  slaves,  and,  so  late  as  1811,  bought  a  coffle, 
and  drove  them  to  Louisiana  for  sale."  The  statement 
upon  its  very  front  seemed  to  me  improbable ;  and 
desirous  to  defend  the  character  of  my  lamented  friend 
against  such  a  charge,  if  it  could  be  done,  I  addressed  a 
letter,  on  the  llth  of  February  last,  to  Francis  P.  Blair, 
Esq.,  of  Silver  Spring,  near  Washington,  D.  C.,  mention- 
ing the  statement  you  had  made,  and  requesting  him  to 
furnish  me  with  such  evidence  of  the  truth  or  error  of 
the  same,  as  might  be  in  his  power.  Mr.  Blair,  you  may 
perhaps  remember,  was  for  many  years  the  editor  of  the 
Washington  Globe.  He  was  the  intimate  and  faithful 
friend  of  General  Jackson,  who,  prior  to  his  decease,  gave 

26 


WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

him  his  papers,  and  left  it  in  charge  to  him  "  to  take  care 
of  his  character  when  dead." 

Upon  receiving  my  letter,  Mr.  Blair  immediately  wrote 
to  Andrew  Jackson,  the  adopted  son  of  the  late  President 
Jackson,  with  the  above  extract,  and  requesting  him  to 
communicate  with  me  or  with   himself  upon  the  subject. 
That  gentleman,  indignant  at  the  charge,  did  not  hesi- 
tate a  moment  to  give  it  a  positive   denial ;  and  being 
then  at  a  distance  from  home,  (at   Memphis,)  promised 
upon    his    return   to   furnish   such   evidence   as   should 
remove  all  doubt  upon  the  question.     He  accordingly,  on 
reaching  Nashville,  called  upon  his  neighbors,  who  had 
known  the  general   before  and  after  the  year  1811,  and 
they  have  furnished  him  with  the  following  statements, 
which  will   be  published  in  the  Boston  Post,  together  with 
this  explanatory  communication  to  you.     I  have  under- 
stood that  your  letter  containing  the  charge  has  been 
extensively   read;    on  which  account  it  seemed  to  me 
only  just  and  proper  that  these  communications  contain- 
ing its  refutation  should  have  such  a  circulation,  as  it  might 
be  in  my  power  to  give  them.     To  my  mind  they  are 
perfectly  conclusive  ;  and,  therefore,  unless  I  am  deceived, 
you  will  see  at  once  the  error  into  which  you  have  fallen, 
in  having  made  so  grave  a  charge  against  the  character  of 
one,  who  will  live  forever  in  the  grateful  remembrance 
and  admiration  of  his  country.     Assertions  of  this  kind, 
in  derogation  of  the   reputation  of  the  good  and  great, 
may  answer  for  the  World's  Convention  at  Exeter  Hall,  and 
escape  contradiction ;  but,  when  an  author  undertakes,  as 
you  have  done,  to  write  and  publish  an  elaborate  letter, 
addressed  "  to  the  people  of  the  United  States,"  he  should 
carefully  examine  the  testimony  upon  which  his  state- 
ments are  made,  and  have  always  in  remembrance  those 
lines  of  the  poet  Burns  : 


DEFENCE  OF  GENERAL  JACKSON.  203 

"  If  there  *s  a  hole  in  a'  your  coats, 

I  rede  you  tent  it  : 
A  chiel's  amang  you  taking  notes, 
And,  faith,  he  '11  prent  it." 

If  you  are  in  possession  of  any  evidence  to  sustain  the 
allegation  that  General  Jackson  was  a  slave-dealer,  you 
will,  of  course,  now  have  an  opportunity  of  informing  the 
public  what  it  is. 

It  has  been  the  fortune  of  but  few  persons  to  contend  with 
such  injustice  and  detraction  as  General  Jackson  encoun- 
tered, during  the  eight  years  he  was  President ;  but,  even 
prior  to  his  decease,  most  of  the   unjust  charges,  which 
various  persons  had  made  against  him,  had  been  retracted 
by  their  authors ;  the   Senate  of  the  United   States  had 
expunged  from  their  journal,  the  celebrated  resolution  of 
Mr  Clay,  alleging  that  he  had  violated  the  constitution  by 
the  removal  of  the  public  deposits,  and  he  had,  in  a  good 
measure,  realized  the  exalted  praise  which  will  be  awarded 
him  by  the  pen  of  the  impartial  historian.  Mr.  Webster,  even, 
who  opposed  him  for  so  many  years  in  the  Congress  of  the 
United  States,  has  since  availed  himself  of  more  than  one 
occasion,  to  do  justice  to  his  memory ;  and,  in  his  speech 
at  Philadelphia,  reported  in  the  Boston  Daily  Advertiser,  of 
the  7th  December,  1846,  in  speaking  of  him,  made  use  of 
the    following    remarkable   words  :  "  He  was  a  man  of 
sense,  and  a  man  of  strong  character.     I  believe  that  his 
aims  were  all  for  the  happiness  and  glory  of  his  country. 
I  thought,  to  be  sure,  that,  to   extend  and  perfect  that 
glory,  he  did  exercise  a  little  more  power  than  he  was 
constitutionally  in  possession  of;  but  candor  compels  me  to 
say,  that  I  ever  thought  he  meant  well,  and  while,  to  a 
certain  extent,  he  sought  his  own  glory  and  renown,  that 
he  connected  the  glory  and  renown  of  his  country." 

On  this  account,  the  charge  you  have  made  now,  seemed 
to  me  gratuitous  and  uncalled  for,  by  the  subject  under 


204  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

consideration.  You  may  be  of  opinion  that  he  had  his 
imperfections ;  but  yet,  I  cannot  doubt,  that  you  have  the 
greatest  veneration  for  the  public  and  private  life  of  Gen- 
eral Jackson.  It  was  my  fortune  to  be  educated  amongst 
those  who  were  accustomed  to  speak  evil  of  him  ;  but 
when  I  became  personally  acquainted  with  him,  and  could 
appreciate  all  the  excellencies  of  his  character,  I  found 
him  to  be  a  hero,  a  patriot,  and  a  Christian.  About  the 
year  1828, 1  happened  to  read,  in  a  newspaper,  a  letter  of 
his  to  Mr.  Monroe,  written  during  the  darkest  period  of 
the  war  with  England,  which  commenced  in  the  summer 
of  1812.  General  Hull  had  surrendered,  with  his  army, 
at  Detroit;  the  city  of  Washington  had  been  entered  by 
the  British  troops,  and  the  public  buildings  had  been  burnt. 
In  this  dilemma,  not  knowing  which  way  to  turn,  Mr. 
Monroe,  who  was  the  Secretary  of  State,  and,  I  believe, 
also  acting  Secretary  of  War,  wrote  to  General  Jackson, 
then  living  in  a  distant  state,  for  counsel  and  advice.  The 
letter  was  a  private  one,  and  the  writer  had  no  reason  to 
suppose  that  it  would  ever  be  made  public.  General 
Jackson  replied  to  it  at  once,  and,  amongst  other  lessons 
of  wisdom  which  he  gave,  expressed  himself,  as  nearly  as 
I  can  remember,  in  the  following  words  :  "  In  times  like 
the  present,  when  our  country  is  in  danger,  all  party  dis- 
tinctions must  be  forgotten.  The  crisis  is  such  as  to 
demand  the  greatest  talents,  and  the  most  exalted  patriot- 
ism. In  all  your  future  appointments,  let  the  only  inquiry 
be,  Is  the  candidate  capable,  is  he  patriotic,  is  he  fit  for 
the  station?" 

I  laid  down  the  paper,  and  I  said,  The  writer  of  this 
may  not  be  a  Greek,  or  Roman,  but  I  have  read  the  annals 
of  Greece  and  Rome  in  vain,  if  a  nobler  sentiment,  if  a 
more  exalted  love  of  country,  can  be  found  in  them.  Some 
time  after,  I  made  his  personal  acquaintance,  and,  as  his 
public  measures  seemed  to  me  the  most  conducive  to  the 


DEFENCE  OF  GENERAL  JACKSON.          205 

greatness  and  best  interests  of  my  country,  I  gave  them,  at 
all  times,  my  most  cordial  support. 

A  few  years  only  have  passed  away  since  General 
Jackson  occupied  the  presidential  chair,  yet,  the  great 
principles,  which  he  proclaimed  with  such  intuitive  wis- 
dom, have  already  become  the  settled  policy  of  the 
nation. 

As  respects  the  character  of  the  testimony  sent  me  by 
Mr.  Jackson,  nothing  need  be  said.  The  names  of  the 
gentlemen  who  have  thus  joined  in  vindicating  the  repu- 
tation of  their  venerated  fellow  citizen,  are  well  known  to 
the  country,  and  require  no  endorsement  of  mine. 

The  letter  from  Major  Thomas  Claiborne,  mentioned  in 
Mr.  Jackson's  letter  of  23d  April,  not  having  been  yet 
received,  it  has  been  decided  to  publish  the  other  com- 
munications without  further  delay. 

I  remain,  sir,  truly  your  most  ob't  servant, 

S.  D.  BRADFORD. 
To  REV.  THEODORE  PARKER,   Boston. 


SILVER  SPRING,  (near  Washington  City,) 

Feb.  23,  1848. 

DEAR  SIR, — The  kind  interest  you  have  always  taken  in  the 
honest  fame  of  General  Jackson,  is  in  good  keeping  with  your  own 
high  character.  Allow  me  to  thank  you  for  the  present  instance  of 
it.  It  evinces  how  well  he  placed  his  confidence  in  regarding  you 
as  a  friend,  on  whom  he  might  fix  his  strong  attachment. 

On  the  reception  of  your  letter,  I  enclosed  it  to  Andrew  Jackson, 
and  desired  him  to  obtain  from  the  general's  old  neighbors  a  con- 
tradiction of  the  story,  which  I  knew  must  be  false.  He  was  not 
at  home,  but  replies  from  Memphis,  Tennessee,  and  contradicts, 
absolutely,  the  charge  as  quoted  in  your  letter  from  the  statement 
of  the  traducer.  He  says :  "  You  are  at  liberty  to  state  to  Mr. 
Bradford,  that  my  lamented  father  was  never  engaged  in  the  slave 
trade,  as  can  be  proved  by  highly  respectable  citizens  of  Nashville 


206  WORKS  OF    S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

and  its  neighborhood,  well  acquainted  with  all  the  transactions 
before  and  after  1811,  the  period  assigned  for  his  participation  in 
this  traffic.  Their  testimony  I  will  get,  and  forward,  as  soon  as  I 
return  home." 

Supposing  that  the  author  of  the  accusation  could  not  invent  such 
a  calumny  without  being  the  dupe  of  some  misrepresentation,  the 
letter    suggests    that    "the    reverend   gentleman     may  have  been 
imposed  upon  by  some  false    relation  of  an    occurrence,  in    which 
General  Jackson  was  engaged  a  few  years  anterior  to    1811,  touch- 
ing some  slaves  in  the  low  country,  the  property  of  a  Mr.  Coleman. 
This  gentleman  came  to  Nashville,  introduced  to   the   good   offices 
of  the  general  as  a  man  of  fortune,  high  standing,  great  enterprise, 
and  public  spirit.     He  was  plausible  and  ingratiating,  and  gained 
confidence  by  entering   largely  and   successfully  into   the   western 
trade.     The  extent  of  his  business,  and  his  apparent  means  com- 
manded, as   they  required,  large   credits.     In    the    course    of  his 
negotiations  with  the   banks,  among   others  he  involved  General 
Jackson  to  a  considerable  amount,  as  an  endorser.     Thus  sustained, 
after  having  pushed  his  speculations  in   tobacco,   cotton,  and  other 
produce,  he  undertook  himself  to  become   a  planter ;  he   bought 
slaves  in  Virginia,  and  settled    plantations  in  Louisiana  and  Mis- 
sissippi.    In  this  career  he  broke,  and  left  General  Jackson  to  pay  a 
large  amount  of  his   debts.     The   general,  with   his    characteristic 
energy,  immediately  mounted  his  horse,  and  hastened  to  the  low 
country  to  secure  himself,  in  some  degree,  out  of  the  wreck  of  the 
estate  there.      He    found   some   negroes,  which   he    secured    and 
brought  home  with  him,  travelling  along  with  them  through  the 
wilderness  and  Indian  nations.     The  Indian  agent,  Dinsmore,  who 
lived  in  the  Choctaw  country,  was  in  the  habit   of  extorting  con- 
siderable sums  for  safe  passports,  through  the  terror  of  the  tribes  he 
controlled,  from  emigrants  and  other  travellers.     When  such  were 
without  money,  he  detained  them,  and  made  them  work  for  a   pas- 
sage.    The  general  resolved  to  put  an  end  to   this   abuse.     At  the 
head  of  his  negroes  he  marched  through  the   agency  and  the  sur- 
rounding Indians  with  a  countenance  that  defied  Dinsmore,  who, 
in  this  instance,  waived  his  demands.      But  General  Jackson  was 
not  satisfied  with  immunity  in  his  own  case.      He  wrote  to   Mr. 
Madison,  and  had  Dinsmore  dismissed. 


DEFENCE  OF  GENERAL  JACKSON.  207 

"  From  this  narrative,  you  will  perceive  that  my  father,  so  far  from 
selling  the  negroes  in  the  slave  market,  where  he  might  have 
turned  them  to  the  best  account,  saved  them  from  this  fate  at  con- 
siderable hazard  to  himself.  Others  of  Coleman's  negroes  might 
have  been,  sold  there  to  discharge  his  obligations,  and  probably  out 
of  this  the  misrepresentations  in  regard  to  my  father  may  have 
sprung." 

In  this,  you  have,  my  dear  sir,  a  sufficient  reply  to  the  imputa- 
tion which  you  have  had  the  goodness  to  bring  to  my  notice. 
With  great  respect,  I  am,  dear  sir,-  yours,  etc., 

F.  P.  BLAIR. 
To  S.  D.  BRADFORD,  Esq. 


SILVER  SPRING,  May  4,  1848. 

MY  DEAK  SIR, — I  received  yesterday  the  enclosed  letters  from 
Andrew  Jackson,  and  hasten  to  transmit  them  to  you,  trusting  that 
your  generous  feeling  will  at  once  employ  them  to  clear  up  the 
unjust  aspersions  cast  by  Mr.  Parker  on  General  Jackson's  charac- 
ter. Probably  it  would  be  well,  in  any  communication  you  make 
to  the  public  press,  to  connect,  with  the  letters  sent  now,  a  portion 
of  Mr.  Jackson's  former  letter,  the  substance  of  which  I  gave  in 
my  letter  to  you.  This  would  show  that  the  matter  commanded 
early  attention,  and  was  only  deferred  by  Mr.  Jackson's  absence 
from  home.  I  leave  it,  however,  altogether  to  your  management, 
and  shall  only  repeat  my  thanks -for  your  kind  interposition,  with 
my  entire  confidence  in  the  prudence  with  which  it  will  be 
directed.  Yours  truly, 

F.  P.  BLAIR. 

To  S.  D.  BRADFORD,  Esq. 


NASHVILLE,  April  23,  1848. 

DEAR  SIR, — Enclosed  I  forward  you  a  statement  of  Major 
W.  B.  Lewis,  also  Judge  Balch's,  on  the  subject  of  the  slan- 
der against  my  venerated  father,  and  which  you  will  please 
forward  to  Mr.  Bradford,  and  in  a  few  days  our  friend,  Major 
Thomas  Claiborne,  will  write  Mr.  B.  a  full  statement  of  facts, 
etc.,  and  if  that  will  not  answer  for  the  reverend  gentleman, 


208  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

we  can  get  the  statements  of  at  least  fifty  old  settlers  here  to  the 
facts,  etc.,  that  my  father  was  never  considered  a  slave-dealer  in 
the  sense  intended  to  be  applied  to  him.  To  be  sure  he  occasion- 
ally bought  a  few  for  his  own  use,  but  never  sold  any ;  nor  did 
he  ever  traffic  any  in  that  way.  What  he  had,  and  what  he  kept, 
loved  him  like  children,  and  were  treated  as  such,  etc.  If  at  any 
time  you  or  friend  Bradford  wish  any  information  on  the  subject, 
please  address  me,  and  it  shall  be  punctually  attended  to. 

Respectfully,  your  friend  and  ob't  servant, 

A.  JACKSON. 
F.  P.  BLAIR,  Esq. 


NASHVILLE,  April  24,  1848. 

DEAR  SIR, — I  have  read  an  extract  from  a  pamphlet  recently  pub- 
lished by  the  Rev.  Theodore  Parker,  in  which  he  charges  that 
General  Andrew  Jackson  was  a  negro  trader,  and  that,  "  as  late  as 

1811,  he  drove  a  coffle  of  slaves  to  New  Orleans,  where  they  were 
sold  on  his  account." 

I  became  a  resident  of  the  immediate  vicinity  of  Nashville  in 

1812.  In    1813,   General  Jackson  and  myself  were  qualified  as 
executors  of  the  last  will  and  testament  of  a  gentleman  who  died, 
leaving   a  large  estate,  which  was   involved  in  difficulties.     We 
were   then  brought  into  intimate  private  relations.     It  was  well 
known  to  the  people  here  generally,  that  General  Jackson  made  a 
journey  by  land  to  Natchez,  in  1811 — that  he  went  there  to  secure 
himself  from  injury,  in   consequence  of  being  bound  as  surety  for 
some   persons,  whose   names  I  do  not  now  remember — that  he  in- 
demnified himself  by  purchasing  from  those  persons  a  parcel  of 
slaves,    which  he   brought   to  Tennessee  and    placed   on  his  own 
plantation,  where   the   survivors  and  the  descendants  of  those  who 
have  died,  now  are. 

That  I  might  be  satisfied  of  the  correctness  of  my  recollection 
of  this  ancient  transaction,  I  have  conversed  with  a  person  of  this 
city,  who  became  a  resident  of  it  in  1809,  and  who  differed  politi- 
cally with  General  Jackson.  He  will  testify  to  the  truth  of  all 
that  I  have  here  stated.  This  gentleman  is  known  to  maintain  the 
highest  character  for  veracity. 

I   have  no   doubt  that  the  reverend  divine  has  published  to  the 


DEFENCE  OF  GENERAL  JACKSON.  209 

world  a  vile  and  atrocious  calumny,  to  injure  the  character  of  your 
honored  and  deeply  lamented  father. 

Very  respectfully,  your  obedient  servant, 

ALFRED  PALCH. 
To  A.  JACKSON,  Esq.,  Hermitage. 


FAIRFIELD,  April  20,  1848. 

DEAR  SIR, — I  have  just  received  your  note  enclosing  a  letter  from 
Mr.  Bradford,  of  Roxbury,  together  with  an  extract  from  a  pamph- 
let written  by  Theodore  Parker,  who  charges  General  Jackson 
with  having  been  engaged  in  the  slave  trade,  and  "  that,  as  late  as 
1811,  he  drove  a  come  of  slaves  to  New  Orleans,  where  they  were 
sold  on  his  account." 

Supposing,  from  my  long  acquaintance  with  the  general,  and  inti- 
mate knowledge  of  his  business  transactions  generally,  that  I  would 
be  likely  to  know  the  truth  or  falsity  of  this  charge  against  your 
deceased  father,  you  ask  me  if  there  is  any  foundation  for  it.  In 
answer  I  say,  Not  the  slightest.  He  never  was  engaged  at  any 
time  in  the  "slave  trade."  I  have  had  no  opportunity,  since  the 
receipt  of  your  note,  of  conversing  with  any  of  the  early  settlers 
of  this  country,  but  I  feel  confident  that  there  is  not  one  of  them, 
who  would  not  testify  to  the  correctness  of  this  assertion. 

The  general  did  go  down  to  the  lower  Mississippi  in  1811,  as 
alleged ;  but  Mr.  Parker  is  altogether  mistaken  in  regard  to  the 
object  of  his  visit  to  that  country.  It  was  not  for  the  purpose  of 
selling  slaves,  but  to  secure  a  debt,  for  which  he  had  become 
responsible  ;  and,  to  effect  this,  he  was  necessarily  compelled  to  take 
a  parcel  of  negroes.  But,  instead  of  selling  them  there,  where 
they  would  have  commanded  the  highest  prices,  he  brought  them 
home  with  him,  and  put  them  on  his  own  plantation,  where  they 
remain  to  this  day ;  or  such  of  them,  at  least,  as  are  still  living. 

No,  sir  ;  your  father  was  no  trafficker  in  slaves.  He  occasionally 
bought  a  few  for  the  use  of  his  own  estate,  but  I  never  knew  him, 
in  my  life,  to  sell  any.  The  reverend  abolitionist,  therefore,  has 
done  great  injustice  to  the  memory  of  your  illustrious  father,  in 
charging  him  with  having  been  engaged,  at  any  period  of  his  life 
in  the  slave  trade.  I  am,  dear  sir,  very  truly  yours, 

W.  B.  LEWIS. 

To  ANDREW  JACKSON,  Esq.,  Hermitage. 

27 


LETTER    TO    THE    HON.    H.    G.    OTIS. 

WEST  ROXBURY,  (near  Boston,) 

October  30th,  1848. 

SIR, — Upon  a  recent  occasion  you  have  thought  proper 
to  address  a  long  and  elaborate  letter  to  "  the  People  of 
Massachusetts/'  touching  the  pending  election  for  Presi- 
dent of  the  United  States.  I  have  bestowed  upon  that 
communication  all  the  time  and  consideration  which  are 
due  to  the  subject  discussed,  and  to  the  distinguished  source 
from  which  it  emanated,  and,  although  but  an  humble 
individual,  and  without  any  of  the  testimonials  of  public 
favor  which  have  marked  your  career,  yet,  as  one  of  the 
people  to  whom  your  letter  was  addressed,  I  venture  to 
offer  some  obvious  remarks  upon  some  of  the  topics  to 
which  you  have  invited  the  public  attention.  Referring 
to  "your  personal  friend,  but  political  antagonist,"  Mr. 
Van  Buren,  and  his  present  position  before  the  country, 
you  say  "  you  have  scarcely  recovered  from  the  astonish- 
ment and  perplexity  excited  by  his  course ; "  and  yet,  I 
am  sure  your  astonishment  could  not  have  equalled  mine, 
when,  upon  taking  up  the  Boston  Daily  Advertiser,  I  found 
you  had  enlisted  as  a  volunteer  under  the  standard  of 
General  Taylor,  a  southerner,  a  slave-holder,  a  military 
chieftain,  a  person  whom  you  have  never  seen,  with  whom 
you  have  no  personal  acquaintance,  and  of  whom  you  can 
know  absolutely  nothing,  as  respects  his  qualifications  for 
the  presidency,  except  upon  the  report  of  others.  It  is 
the  peculiar  property  of  military  achievements,  to  dazzle 


THE  HARTFORD  CONVENTION. 

and  bewilder;  and  it  would  be  very  easy  to  mention 
instances,  in  which  young  and  inexperienced  persons,  under 
the  influence  of  this  feeling,  have  left  friends  and  home  to 
seek  their  fortunes  in  the  tented  field;  but,  from  those 
who  have  reached  your  matured  years,  one  looks  for 
caution,  and  a  thorough  examination  of  the  credentials  of 
such  as  would  claim  confidence  and  credit.  If  you  had 
volunteered  a  letter  in  favor  of  Mr.  Clay,  the  champion  of 
Prohibitory  Duties,  the  advocate  of  a  National  Bank,  the 
opposer  of  the  Sub-treasury  system,  it  would  have  excited 
the  surprise  of  no  one.  It  would  have  corresponded  with 
the  opinions  and  sentiments  which  you  have  always  been 
understood  to  entertain,  and  which,  so  far  as  you  have  had 
the  opportunity,  you  have  always  maintained  and  sup- 
ported. In  the  case  of  General  Taylor,  however,  you  have 
no  evidence  whatever  that  he  would  be  in  favor  of  one  of 
the  above-named  measures ;  and  as  they  are  all  diametri- 
cally opposed  to  the  sentiments  ,of  the  people  amongst 
whom  "he  has  lived,  and  moved,  and  had  his  being/' 
there  is  a  strong  probability  that  not  one  of  them  would 
receive  his  favor.  He  has  said  already,  to  his  supporters, 
"  You  must  take  me  on  your  own  responsibility  " — "  I  will 
not  be  the  candidate  of  a  party;  nor  will  I  be  the  expo- 
nent of  your  party  principles ;  nor  look  to  the  doctrines 
of  your  party  as  the  rule  of  my  actions."  He  has  posi- 
tively declined  to  give  his  opinion  on  any  one  question 
except  the  practical  use  of  the  veto  power ;  refused  to  be 
governed  by  the  action  of  the  Philadelphia  Convention, 
and  would  have  accepted  a  nomination  from  the  Conven- 
tion assembled  at  Baltimore,  and  have  become  the  candi- 
date of  the  Democratic  party.  He  has  never  filled  a  civil 
station ;  has  publicly  declared  that  he  has  never  sufficiently 
considered  the  leading  questions,  which  divide  the  public 
mind,  to  give  an  opinion  upon  them;  and  has  no  expe- 
rience of  public  affairs,  except  as  a  military  commander. 


WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

All  these  things  were  known  to  the  Whig  delegates  at 
Philadelphia,  and  yet  they  nominated  him,  as  Mr.  Webster 
has  honestly  and  truly  declared,  on  account  of  his 
"  availability."  "  The  nomination,"  says  Mr.  Webster,  in 
his  speech  at  Marshfield,  "  is  not  satisfactory  to  the  Whigs 
of  Massachusetts,  and  it  would  be  idle  to  conceal  the  fact. 
General  Taylor  was  nominated  exactly  for  this  reason : 
that,  believing  him  to  be  a  Whig,  they  thought  he  could 
be  more  easily  chosen  than  any  other  Whig.  That  is  the 
whole  of  it ;  "  and  in  another  place  he  adds,  "  There  is  no 
man  who  is  more  firmly  of  opinion  than  myself;  that  such 
a  nomination  was  not  fit  to  make."  Such  are  the  views 
of  Mr.  Webster,  of  whom  you  have  spoken  in  such  terms 
of  panegyric,  and  who  has  returned  the  compliment  by 
saying,  in  a  more  recent  speech,  that  your  letter  "  exhibits 
the  vigor  of  youth,  and  the  wisdom  of  age."  Surely,  he 
must  have  forgotten,  at  Abington,  on  the  9th  of  October, 
the  sentiments  he  expressed  at  Marshfield  on  the  1st  of 
September;  for  few  things  can  be  found  to  differ  more 
than  Mr.  Webster's  first  speech,  and  your  letter.  Mr. 
Webster  would  have  General  Taylor  supported,  if  at  all, 
upon  the  principle  of  "  availability ; "  you,  on  the  other 
hand,  would  claim  the  suffrages  of  the  people  for  him  on 
account  of  his  own  intrinsic  merit ;  and,  in  your  ardor  for 
his  cause,  have  compared  him  to  the  great  Duke  of 
Marlborough  and  the  Duke  of  Wellington.  He  must  be 
a  bold  man,  who  would  deny  the  transcendent  talents  of 
either  of  those  great  generals.  Their  military  achieve- 
ments can  be  never  forgotten  ;  and  yet,  few  persons  would 
venture,  probably,  to  propose  them  as  models  for  the 
presidency  of  the  American  republic.  However  brilliant 
may  have  been  the  victories  gained  by  Marlborough,  the 
fact  is  no  longer  attempted  to  be  concealed,  that  a  long 
and  most  burthensome  war  was  continued  against  France, 
for  sake  of  the  spoils  and  plunder,  which  were  wanted  to 


THE  HARTFORD  CONVENTION.  213 

satisfy  the  cupidity  of  the  Duchess  of  Marlborough ;  and 
a  spirited  writer  in  France,  M.  Scribe,  in  the  amusing 
historical  comedy  of  the  Verre  d'  Eau,  has  ably  shown  that, 
however  great  may  have  been  the  duke  in  the  field,  there 
was  a  greater  (his  wife,)  in  the  court  at  home ;  and  that 
if  the  duchess  had  not  spilt  the  glass  of  water  upon  the 
.dress  of  Queen  Ann,  which  occasioned  a  quarrel,  and  a 
change  of  ministers,  the  war  might  have  been  continued 
for  an  indefinite  period.  O'f  the  Duke  of  Wellington,  as 
a  civilian  and  minister,  it  is  praise  enough  to  say  that,  not 
originating,  but  yielding  his  assent  to  the  various  wise  and 
useful  reform  measures  proposed  by  Sir  Robert  Peel,  he 
has  clearly  proved,  by  his  example,  how  much  better  it  is 
sometimes  to  follow  than  to  lead.  Of  Napoleon  and 
Washington,  whose  examples  you  have  also  cited  as  proofs 
that  General  Taylor  ought  to  be  the  next  President,  little 
need  be  said.  The  sounds  of  the  Te  Deums,  which  were 
chanted  in  Boston,  for  the  downfall  of  the  first,  as  "  the 
greatest  of  tyrants  and  usurpers,"  can  almost  even  now 
be  heard.  As  respects  General  Washington,  he  had  been 
engaged  in  the  councils  of  his  country  from  the  commence- 
ment of  the  troubles  with  Great  Britain ;  he  had  been  a 
member  of  the  Continental  Congress,  and  was  as  much 
admired  for  his  wisdom  and  prudence  in  debate,  as  for  his 
courage  and  conduct  in  war.  That  the  negative  of  all 
this  is  true  as  respects  General  Taylor,  has  been  proved 
already,  and  is  denied  by  none. 

In  reading  your  panegyric  of  these  eminent  military  men. 
the  mind  is  involuntarily  carried  a  few  years  back  to  1828, 
when  the  people  of  the  United  States,  mindful  of  his  past 
sacrifices  and  unwearied  labors  for  the  happiness  of  his 
country,  were  about  to  elevate  General  Jackson  to  the 
presidency.  It  was  declared  by  the  party  to  which  you 
belong,  to  be  a  "  precedent  fraught  with  the  greatest 
danger  to  the  republic,  to  elevate  a  military  chieftain  to  the 


WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

presidency."  The  history  of  Greece  and  Rome  was 
searched  through  to  find  instances  confirmatory  of  the 
assertion.  It  was  said  that  General  Jackson  would  declare 
war  against  England,  and  that  he  had  not  the  qualifica- 
tions for  filling  the  office  it  was  proposed  to  give  him. 
The  people,  however,  often  wiser  than  those  who  would  be 
their  leaders,  heeded  not  these  vaticinations  of  the  Whigs, 
and  raised  him  to  the  place,  which  he  dignified  so  much 
during  the  eight  years  he  filled  it.  Time  would  fail  me 
should  I  attempt  to  recite  the  noble  and  disinterested 
actions  which  distinguished  his  previous  life :  his  labors  as 
a  judge,  a  senator,  and  a  leader  in  the  long  and  bloody 
wars  against  the  Indians,  in  which  he  ruined  a  constitution, 
once  one  of  the  firmest,  by  enduring  hardships  and  priva- 
tions of  the  severest  kind.  All  those  noble  deeds  and 
sacrifices  are  part  and  parcel  of  the  history  of  our  country, 
and  can  never  be  blotted  out ;  and  this  is  an  account  of 
the  patriot  and  sage  whose  administration,  in  your  letter 
to  the  people  of  Massachusetts,  you  have  thought  proper 
to  assail ;  and  which  you  say  "  you  regard  as  the  fountain 
of  all  subsequent  abuses."  What  those  abuses  are,  must 
be  a  matter  of  conjecture,  as  you  have  not  named  them. 
His  use  of  the  veto  is  probably  one ;  although  this  same 
power  was  exercised  twice  by  General  Washington,  six 
times  by  Mr.  Madison,  and  once  by  Mr.  Monroe,  at 
periods  in  the  history  of  our  country  when  our  legislation, 
as  all  must  admit,  was,  comparatively  speaking,  pure  and 
disinterested.  General  Jackson  was  president  eight  years, 
during  a  period  of  great  political  excitement,  and  exer- 
cised the  veto  power  only  three  times  oftener  than  Mr. 
Madison.  But  if  the  administration  of  General  Jackson  be, 
as  you  now  assert,  "  the  fountain  of  all  subsequent  abuses," 
why  did  you  oppose  the  measures  of  Mr.  Jefferson,  and 
his  successor,  Mr.  Madison,  from  1801  to  1817?  why,  in 
almost  every  instance,  did  you  denounce  the  plans  from 


THE  HARTFORD  CONVENTION.  215 

year  to  year  submitted  by  those  patriots  for  the  good  of  their 
country ,  and  do  your  utmost,  by  the  pen  and  the  tongue, 
to  drive  them  from  power?  Surely  those  abuses  must 
have  had  a  much  earlier  origin  in  your  opinion ;  as  the 
contrary  supposition  would  go  to  prove  that  your  only 
object,  prior  to  1829,  in  opposing  the  measures  of  the 
Anti-Federalists,  was  to  gain  for  yourself  and  friends 
their  places  of  emolument  and  power. 

I  have  already  stated  the  surprise  I  felt,  at  your  coming 
out  in  favor  of  General  Taylor ;  but  the  feeling  I  entertain 
on  account  of  the  attack  you  have  made  upon  the  admin- 
istration of  General  Jackson,  is  one  of  regret,  not  on  his, 
but  on  your  account.  It  evinces  a  bad  taste,  and  a  want 
of  a  just  appreciation  of  the  admiration  entertained  for 
him  by  his  countrymen  in  all  sections  of  the  country,  and 
by  people  of  both  political  parties.  Even  Mr.  Webster,  as 
if  conscience-stricken  for  his  opposition  to  him  for  so  many 
years  in  the  senate,  has  availed  himself  of  more  than  one 
opportunity  of  doing  justice  to  his  memory  in  the  midst  of 
his  countrymen.  Comparisons,  they  say,  are  odious  ;  and 
yet,  sometimes  they  are  apposite  and  useful.  Let,  then,  the 
parallel  be  drawn  between  what  you  have  done  for  your 
country,  and  General  Jackson.  I  have  already  mentioned 
his  toils  and  sacrifices  in  the  Indian  wars.  One  other 
achievement  of  his,  the  defence  of  New  Orleans,  and  final 
defeat  and  dispersion  of  the  British  army  on  the  memora- 
ble 8th  of  January,  1815,  shall  suffice.  It  is  admitted 
by  all,  that  but  for  the  unparalleled  exertions  and  great 
skill  of  General  Jackson,  that  important  city  would  have 
fallen  under  the  dominion  of  the  enemy. 

Permit  me  to  inquire,  what  were  you,  sir,  doing  for  the 
safety  and  preservation  of  your  country,  in  December, 
1814,  and  January,  1815  ?  According  to  a  letter  of  yours, 
printed  by  your  authority,  in  1814,  you,  and  eleven  other 
citizens  of  Massachusetts,  in  secret  conclave,  assembled 


216  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

at  Hartford,  on  the  15th  of  December,  1814,  and 
remained  in  deliberation  till  the  5th  of  January,  1815, 
plotting,  as  was  reported  at  the  time,  and  has,  in  the  opin- 
ion of  many  persons,  been  never  refuted  since,  a  dissolu- 
tion of  the  Union  !  I  do  not  assert  this,  but  I  have  before 
me,  a  letter  of  the  late  John  Quincy  Adams,  addressed 
to  you  and  others,  and  dated  the  30th  of  December, 
1828,  in  which  he  reiterates  a  statement  he  had  previously 
made  to  certain  members  of  Congress,  and  adds,  "  it  was 
in  those  letters  of  1808,  and  1809,  that  I  mentioned  the 
design  of  certain  leaders  of  the  Federal  party,  to  effect  a 
dissolution  of  the  Union,  and  the  establishment  of  a 
Northern  Confederacy.  This  design  had  been  formed  in 
the  winter  of  1803,  and  1804,  immediately  after,  and  as 
a  consequence  of  the  acquisition  of  Louisiana."  In  another 
part  of  the  letter,  he  adds,  "  That  project,  I  repeat,  had 
gone  to  the  length  of  fixing  upon  a  military  leader  for  its 
execution,  and,  although  the  circumstances  of  the  times 
never  admitted  of  its  execution,  nor  even  of  its  full  devel- 
opment, I  had  yet  no  doubt  in  1808  and  1809,  and  have 
no  doubt  at  this  time,  that  it  is  the  key  to  all  the  great 
movements  of  those  leaders  of  the  Federal  party  of  New 
England,  from  that  time  forward,  till  its  final  catastrophe 
in  the  Hartford  Convention."  I  hope  you  will  not  think 
me  unreasonable,  in  saying  that  you  ought  to  vindicate 
your  name  against  such  a  charge,  before  you  venture  to 
designate  General  Jackson,  an  "  Iron-willed  oppressor." 
You  will,  doubtless,  remember  this  remarkable  letter  of 
Mr.  Adams,  which  he  addressed  to  you  and  twelve  other 
gentlemen,  of  Boston  and  Salem,  in  1828,  from  the  pres- 
idential chair,  and  in  answer  to  one  from  you  and  others, 
in  consequence  of  an  article  Mr.  Adams  was  understood  to 
have  caused  to  be  inserted  in  the  National  Intelligencer  of 
the  21st  of  October,  1828.  The  ostensible  object  of  the 
letter  was  to  inquire  "who  were  the  persons  designated 


THE  HARTFORD  CONVENTION.  217 

as  the  leaders  of  the  party  prevailing  in  Massachusetts,  in 
1808,  whose  object  was,  and  has  been  for  several  years,  as 
Mr.  Adams  had  asserted,  a  dissolution  of  the  Union ; "  and, 
secondly,  "the  whole  evidence  on  which  that  charge  was 
founded."     It  must  have  excited  a  smile  upon  the  face  of 
Mr.  Adams,  the  inquiry  by  you,  who  were  the  persons  desig- 
nated as  the  leaders  of  the  party  prevailing  in  Massachu- 
setts in  1808,  "whose  object  he  asserted  to  be  the  dissolution 
of  the  Union  ?  "     Mr.  Adams"  in  his  reply,  remarked  that 
"  your  avowed  object  was  controversy,"  and  in  confirmation 
of  that,  he  reminded  you  that,  in  the  statement  of  the  charge 
to  Mr.  Jefferson  and  others,  he  had  asserted  "  that,  although 
he  knew  it  from  unequivocal  evidence,  yet  it  was  not 
provable  in  a  court  of  law."     You  perceive  how  he  con- 
nected the  proceedings  of  1803  and  1804  with  those  of 
the  Hartford  Convention  in  1814.     He  never  retracted  the 
charge ;  and   concluded  his   memorable    letter   in   these 
words :  "  It  is  not  improbable  that,  at  some  future  day,  a 
sense  of  solemn  duty  to  my  country  may  require  of  me 
to  disclose  the  evidence,  which  I  do  possess,  and  for  which 
you  call.     But  of  that  day,  the  selection  must  be  of  my 
own  judgment,  and  it  may  be  delayed  till  I  myself  shall 
have  gone  to  answer  for  the  testimony  I  may  bear  before 
the  tribunal  of  your  God  and  mine.     Should  such  disclo- 
sure of  names  even  then  be  made  by  me,  it  will,  if  possible, 
be  made  with  such  reserve,  as  tenderness  to  the  feelings 
of  the  living,  and  the  families  and  friends  of  the  dead 
may   admonish."      These    are   words   of   fearful   import, 
especially  when  one  considers  by  whom  they  were  uttered. 
Some  persons  will  be  unable  to  resist  the  conclusion  that 
Mr.  Adams'  celebrated  journal  must  have  contained  some 
entries  confirmatory  of  what  he  had  stated.     More  than 
eight  months,  however,  have  elapsed,  since  Mr.  Adams  has 
gone,  to  use  his  own  words,  "  to  answer  for  the  testimony 
he  bore,  before  the  tribunal  of  his  God  and  yours,"  and 
yet,  it  has  never  been  stated  that  you  have  called  upon 

28 


218  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

his  son  and  executor,  to  disclose  the  evidence,  for  which 
the  public  has  been  waiting  so  long,  and  which  must 
contain  the  proofs  of  your  innocence  or  guilt.  Nay,  Mr. 
Adams  has  ordered,  in  his  will,  a  fire-proof  building  to  be 
constructed  at  Quincy,  to  contain,  I  suppose,  the  evidence 
to  which  he  had  referred,  in  his  letter  of  1828.  It  must 
be  in  the  possession  of  his  son,  Charles  Francis  Adams,  if 
in  existence,  and  should  be  produced,  not  only  for  your 
sake,  but  for  that,  also,  of  your  native  state.  Furthermore, 
it  will  be  remembered,  that,  in  March  last,  certain  citizens 
of  Boston,  to  illustrate  the  decease  of  Mr.  Adams,  like  the 
ancient  Greek  inhabitants  of  what  was  once  called  Par- 
thenope,  (now  Naples,)  erected,  at  the  Revere  House,  a 
"  mensa,"  or  eating-table,  whereon  a  Silicernium,  or  funeral 
repast,  was  served.  The  only  difference  was,  that  amongst 
the  Greeks,  the  worth  of  the  deceased  was  extolled  pre- 
vious to  the  repast ;  but  in  Boston,  after  due  justice  had 
been  done  to  the  viands.  At  this  funeral  feast,  according 
to  the  journals,  you  attended,  and  took  an  active  part. 
The  circumstance  need  only  be  mentioned.  All  comment 
would  be  quite  superfluous. 

I  am  aware,  that  the  paternity  of  the  Hartford  Conven- 
tion, has  been,  by  you,  ascribed  to  another ;  and  that,  in 
1824,  you  wrote  and  published  a  series  of  letters  in  its 
justification.  But  few  persons,  there  is  reason  to  think,  were 
convinced  by  the  arguments  adduced  at  the  time ;  and  a 
lapse  of  twenty-four  years  has  added  nothing  to  their  force. 
The  secret  conclave  at  Hartford,  cannot,  under  the  most 
favorable  construction,  be  viewed  in  any  other  light  than 
a  bold  attempt  to  intimidate  the  national  government,  and 
to  compel  it  to  make  peace  with  the  enemy,  on  such 
terms  as  might  be  offered.  The  recent  assemblies  in  Ire- 
land, of  the  Repealers,  and  in  England,  of  the  Chartists, 
have  attempted  to  produce  the  same  result  but  by  differ- 
ent means ;  and  every  arrival  from  England,  is  bringing 
us  account  of  the  trial  and  conviction  of  the  leaders. 


THE  HARTFORD  CONVENTION.  219 

But  I  return  to  your  support  of  General  Taylor,  and, 
with  a  few  more  observations,  I  will  conclude.  It  seemed 
probable,  from  the  first,  that  some  powerful  motive  must 
have  actuated  you  to  advocate,  as  you  have  done,  the 
claims  of  General  Taylor;  and  some  persons  have  sup- 
posed you  must  have  had  a  sight  of  his  mysterious  letter 
to  Mr.  Lawrence,  to  which  he  alluded  in  Faneuil  Hall,  and 
also  in  Vermont ;  and  that  it  must  have  promised,  in  the 
event  of  his  election,  a  restoration  of  the  Tariff  of  1842. 
Since,  however,  the  speech  of  Mr.  Webster,  on  the  24th  of 
October,  in  Boston,  all  doubt  upon  the  subject  is  over,  as 
that  gentleman  plainly  tells  us,  that  the  Whigs  must  strive 
to  elect  General  Taylor,  because  then  they  will  be  able  to 
re-establish  the  high  tariff  of  1842.  Mr.  Webster  com- 
plains that  "  it  is  difficult  to  borrow  money  now  ;  " 
and  thinks  the  sub-treasury  act  should  be  repealed  ; 
although  this  measure  has  been  daily  gaining  converts, 
even  in  the  ranks  of  those  who  once  opposed  it  so  much ; 
and,  amongst  others,  Albert  Gallatin,  a  Whig,  and  claimed 
by  his  party,  to  be  the  greatest  financier  in  the  country, 
in  his  letter,  dated  the  first  of  February  last,  upon  the 
expenses  of  the  war,  makes  use  of  these  words  :  "  It  is 
true,  that  the  sub-treasury  act  is  an  experiment,  which  no 
one  state  has  attempted  to  try  for  itself.  But  I  wish  it 
may  have  fair  play ;  for  I  am  clearly  of  opinion  that  it  is 
equally  necessary  for  the  government,  for  the  public  at 
large,  and  for  the  banks  themselves,  that  they  should  never 
be  permitted  to  use  the  public  moneys,  for  the  purpose  of 
increasing  their  discounts."  According  to  Mr.  Webster, 
however,  and  the  Whigs,  the  sub-treasury  act  must  be 
repealed,  and  the  whole  fiscal  concerns  of  the  coun- 
try be  revolutionized ;  and  then,  they  predict,  money 
will  be  abundant.  In  other  words,  all  their  zeal  for 
electing  General  Taylor,  and  all  this  profession  of  patri- 
otism, resolves  itself  into  an  affair  of  dollars  and  cents. 
I  will  not  trespass  longer,  upon  your  time  and  patience. 


220  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

I  have  endeavored  to  express  myself  with  measure  and 
moderation,  without  forgetting  what  is  due  to  you,  or  to 
my  own  self-respect.  Should  you  think  I  have  been  daz- 
zled with  the  splendor  of  military  glory,  in  defending  the 
administration  of  General  Jackson,  I  may,  perhaps,  be 
permitted  to  remark,  that  you  have  been  betrayed  into 
the  same  weakness,  in  blazoning  the  merits  of  General 
Taylor.  I  would  not,  willingly,  say  anything  to  give 
offence,  nor,  on  any  account,  be  personal.  I  have  spoken 
only  of  events  and  public  measures,  which  are  recorded  in 
the  archives  of  our  native  state.  You  have  shown,  in  the 
case  of  Mr.  Van  Buren,  that  there  is  no  necessary  opposi- 
tion between  being  a  "  personal  friend  and  political  antag- 
onist ; "  and  I  have  never  failed,  at  any  time,  to  duly 
appreciate  that  rare  combination  of  talents,  so  remarkably 
exhibited  in  your  case,  which  have  enabled  you  to  become 
so  distinguished  as  a  finished  orator,  an  able  advocate,  a 
learned  judge,  and  eminent  senator.  Some  of  our  coun- 
trymen, with  qualifications  inferior  to  yours,  have  attained 
the  highest  offices  in  the  gift  of  the  nation ;  but  their  idea 
pf  patriotism  embraced  the  whole  United  States.  They 
would  not  "  give  up  to  a  party,  what  was  meant  for  man- 
kind ; "  and  a  membership  with  the  Essex  Junto,  or  the 
Hartford  Convention,  they  would  have  considered  as  an 
offence  against  their  country.  Is  there  not  some  reason 
to  suppose,  that,  could  you  be  permitted  to  live  your  long 
and  eventful  life  over  again,  you  would  avoid  the  errors 
which  have  been  pointed  out  ?  May  we  not,  at  any  rate, 
hope  that  your  example  will  be  heeded  by  the  young  men 
of  our  country ;  and  that  they  will  learn  from  it  that 
lesson  which  it  is  so  eminently  adapted  to  teach  ? 
I  remain,  sir,  very  respectfully, 

Your  most  ob't  servant, 

S.  D.  BRADFORD. 
To  the  Hon.  H.  G.  OTIS,  Boston. 


LETTERS    TO    THE    HON.   WILLIAM   M. 
MEREDITH. 

WEST  ROXBURY,  (near  Boston,) 

February  1st.,  1850. 

DEAR  SIR, — I  send  you,  to-day,  some  letters  addressed 
to  Mr.  Meredith,  Secretary  of  the  Treasury,  of  which  I 
ask  the  insertion  in  your  paper.  They  were  written,  with 
the  exception  of  a  few  trifling  additions,  in  November  last, 
several  weeks  before  Mr.  Meredith's  report  was  published. 
So  accurately  had  public  rumor  foreshadowed  the  policy 
which  such  a  document,  emanating  from  such  a  quarter, 
was  likely  to  recommend,  that  I  have  had  occasion  to  alter 
only  one  paragraph,  in  which  I  had  taken  it  for  granted, 
that  the  secretary  would  propose' an  increase  of  the  duty 
upon  iron  and  coal,  distinctly  and  by  themselves.  Forget- 
ting, for  a  moment,  the  profession  to  which  he  recently 
belonged,  and  that  a  lawyer  is  like  a  pilojt,  who  often  takes 
an  oblique  course  to  reach  a  point  of  land,  which  he  could 
never  fetch  by  sailing  upon  a  straight  and  direct  line,  I 
had  supposed  that  Mr.  Meredith  would  place  the  two 
favorite  articles  of  his  native  state,  in  the  foremost  rank, 
as  every  one  knows  they  must  have  occupied  the  first 
place  in  his  thoughts.  I  could  not  have  anticipated, 
at  the  time,  that  not  only  the  report  itself,  but  the  subse- 
quent proceedings  of  the  secretary,  in  conducting  the 
business  of  his  office,  would  have  called  forth  such  a  host 
of  critics  and  commentators  in  the  papers  of  New  York, 


WORKS  OF  S.  D  BRADFORD. 

and  of  nearly  every  other  city  in  the  Union,  writing  over 
every  variety  of  signature  except  their  own.  It  did  not 
seem  to  me  that  the  moment  had  arrived  for  publishing 
the  letters,  because  congress,  ever  since  the  session  com- 
menced, having  been  occupied  with  only  two  things — the 
choice  of  a  speaker  and  the  slavery  question — no  one 
appeared  ready  for  a  discussion  upon  the  tariff. 

The  consequence  probably  is,  that  some  of  my  remarks 
and  statements  may  have  been  anticipated  by  the  writers 
I  have  just  named,  and  a  further  delay  may  increase  the 
difficulty.  On  this  account,  and  that  the  public  may  not 
be  more  wearied  than  is  necessary,  in  reading  discussions 
upon  a  subject  so  threadbare,  and  upon  which  so  little  of 
novelty  can  be  expected,  (though  so  important,  that  it 
should  be  well  understood,)  I  send  you  the  letters  for 
publication  in  your  valuable  journal,  without  further 
delay. 

I  have  made  no  comment  on  that  part  of  Mr.  Meredith's 
report,  which  recommends  an  increase  of  duty  on  cottons 
and  woollens.  I  have  not  seen  an  account  of  any  conven- 
tion of  the  cotton  or  woollen  manufacturers,  to  request  of 
the  government  more  protection ;  and  most  of  them  are 
either  so  prosperous  already,  or  have  such  a  brilliant  future 
before  them,  that  I  cannot  persuade  myself  they  intend 
making  any  appeal  to  the  sympathy,  or  the  justice  of  con- 
gress, this  year,  at  any  rate.  Should  they  do  so,  it  will  be 
time  to  examine  their  claims,  after  they  shall  have  been 
presented.  But  if  our  manufacturers  are  prosperous,  it 
would  be  the  grossest  flattery  to  assert  that  they  have 
improved,  as  they  should  have  done,  and  as  the  manufac- 
turers of  other  countries  have  done.  The  duties  now  paid 
are  too  high  to  expect  much  improvement;  and  the  manu- 
facturers "  slumber  too  soundly  under  the  tree  of  protec- 
tion," to  attempt  making  the  finer  fabrics  of  cotton.  They 
continue  to  manufacture,  principally, coarse,  grey  sheetings, 


FREE  TRADE  AND  PROTECTION. 

or  printing  cloths.  They  have  gone  largely  into  the 
former,  since  the  passage  of  the  tariff  of  1846  ;  and  should 
it  be  necessary  hereafter  to  publish  an  account  of  all  the 
investments  they  have  made,  in  land,  water  privileges, 
mills,  and  machinery,  since  that  date,  it  would,  if  I  mistake 
not,  unfold  a  tale  of  which  your  distant  readers  have  a 
very  imperfect  conception. 

I  remain,  dear  sir,  very  truly, 

You"r  friend  and  ob't  servant, 

»  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

To  the  Editor  of  the  Boston  Post. 


WEST  ROXBURY,  (near  Boston,) 

February  1st.,  1850. 

SIR, — I  have  not  the  pleasure  of  your  personal  acquaint- 
ance, and  yet,  I  shall  offer  no  apology  for  addressing  to 
you  the  observations  I  may  deem  it  my  duty  to  make, 
upon  the  late  treasury  report,  which,  in  obedience  to  cus- 
tom and  the  law,  you  have  recently  prepared,  and  laid 
before  congress.  The  occasion  is  one  of  the  greatest 
national  importance,  and  concerns  the  interest  and  welfare, 
of  every  individual  in  the  country.  The  subjects  dis- 
cussed, and  the  recommendations  offered,  affect  deeply  our 
national  growth,  our  wealth,  and  our  prosperity.  The 
person,  therefore,  who  fills  the  office  which  you  hold, 
should  not  belong  to  any  particular  clique,  political,  min- 
eral, or  metallic,  but  should  possess  those  high  and  eminent 
qualifications,  which  distinguish  the  patriot  and  statesman. 
The  successor  of  Hamilton,  Gallatin,  Woodbury,  and 
Walker,  should  be  one  animated  by  the  same  elevated 
spirit,  and  having  always  near  his  heart,  not  the  particu- 
lar exclusive  interest  of  the  state,  to  which  he  happens  to 
belong,  but  the  general  welfare  and  prosperity  of  the 


WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

whole  nation.  On  a  review  of  your  report,  it  is  painful 
to  remark  the  want  of  all  these  essential  qualifications. 
We  look  for  wise,  and  well-considered  counsels  from  the 
Secretary  of  the  Treasury  of  the  United  States,  but  we 
find  only  the  unwise  and  inconsiderate  recommendations 
of  the  agent,  or  attorney,  of  the  iron  masters,  and  owners 
of  coal  mines  in  Pennsylvania.  It  is  true,  you  have, 
nowhere  in  your  report,  devoted  a  distinct  paragraph  to 
recommending  an  increase  of  duty  upon  iron  or  coal  by 
themselves  The  practice  of  your  profession  had,  no 
doubt,  taught  you  that,  being  a  native  of  Pennsylvania, 
you  would  be  more  likely  to  obtain  your  object  by  placing 
those  articles  in  juxtaposition  with  sugar  and  other  com- 
modities. 

"  Cosi  all'egro  fanciul  porgiamo  aspersi 
Di  soavi  licor  gli  orli  del  vaso  :  " 

The  most  casual  reader,  however,  cannot  fail  to  have 
remarked  that  iron  and  coal  are  always  uppermost  in  your 
thoughts,  and  that,  on  these  articles  especially,  you  would 
have  the  duty  increased.  Indeed,  we  all  know  that,  ever 
since  March  last,  the  protectionist  journals  through  the 
whole  land,  have  spoken  of  the  assembling  of  congress,  as 
if  its  principal  business  would  be  to  give  additional  pro- 
tection to  iron  and  coal. 

The  position,  in  which  you  have  placed  yourself,  is  the 
more  painful  to  contemplate,  because  having,  before  your 
acceptance  of  office,  belonged  to  a  liberal  profession,  in 
which  you  had  acquired  an  ample  independence,  and 
never  having  had  occasion  to  serve  that  apprenticeship  of 
servility,  deceit,  and  tergiversation,  which  constitute  the 
preliminary  education  of  so  many  American  politicians, 
the  public  had  expected  better  things  of  you — your 
friends,  and  those  too,  who  differed  with  you  in  politics, 
were  willing  to  forget  those  memorable  words  of  Junius, 


FREE  TRADE  AND  PROTECTION. 

who,  in  addressing  another  distinguished  member  of  your 
profession,  remarked,  "  that  the  indiscriminate  defence  of 
right  and  wrong  contracts  the  understanding,  while  it  cor- 
rupts the  heart ;  that  subtlety  is  soon  mistaken  for  wisdom, 
and  impunity  for  virtue  ;  and  that  if  there  be  any  instances 
upon  record,  -(as  some  there  are,  undoubtedly,)  of  genius 
and  morality  united  in  a  lawyer,  they  are  distinguished 
by  their  singularity,  and  operate  as  exceptions."  If  I 
were  personally  unfriendly  -to  you,  if  I  had  any  private 
antipathies  to  gratify,  I  would  dwell  upon  the  elevated 
standing  you  recently  occupied  at  the  bar.  I  would  speak 
of  the  reputation  for  candor  and  independence  conceded 
to  you  by  the  other  members  of  the  profession,  and  by 
the  public  at  large.  I  would  repeat  the  vaticinations  of 
some  of  your  friends,  that  having  accepted  office  without 
solicitation  or  pledges  of  any  kind,  you  would  act  up  to 
the  principles  laid  down  by  the  President  himself,  (and 
which  he  has  so  flagrantly  violated,)  when  he  said  to  the 
Whigs,  "  You  must  take  me  on  your  own  responsibility.  I 
will  not  be  the  candidate  of  a  party,  nor  will  I  be  the 
exponent  of  your  party  principles."  But  although  actu- 
ated by  no  unfriendly  feelings,  I  would  not  fail  to  do  what 
I  can  to  expose  the  injurious  effects  of  the  policy  you  have 
recommended,  before  it  shall  be  adopted  by  congress,  and 
receive  the  sanction  of  the  laws. 

"  The  evil  that  men  do  lives  after  them  ; 
The  good  is  oft  interred  with  their  bones." 

As  you  had  accepted  the  office  of  a  cabinet  minister 
from  a  President  who  had  publicly  declared  he  had  never 
sufficiently  considered  the  leading  questions  which  divide 
the  public  mind,  to  give  an  opinion  upon  them  ;  and  wha 
had  never  any  experience  in  public  affairs  except  as  a 
military  commander,  the  eyes  of  the  whole  country  were 
turned  upon  you  as  the  Mentor,  whose  duty  as  well  as 


226  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

whose  pleasure  it  would  be  to  enlighten  the  ignorance,  to 
guide  the  inexperience,  and  to  direct  the  public  measures 
of  your  neophyte.  It  was  taken  for  granted  that  you  had 
been  an  observer  of  the  events  which  have  been  passing 
of  late  years  in  Europe,  especially  in  England ;  where  a 
nation,  once  amongst  the  most  restrictive  in  its  commer- 
cial laws  and  regulations,  had,  upon  conviction  of  their 
impolicy,  cast  aside  the  rags  of  protection,  abandoning 
them  to  the  Russians,  and  other  uncivilized  hordes, 
and  inviting  all  other  nations  to  join  them  in  an  unbounded 
freedom  of  trade  and  commerce.  It  was  deemed  impos- 
sible that  the  wise  and  far-sighted  measures  of  Mr.  Walker, 
which  have  filled  his  country  with  such  unexampled  pros- 
perity, and  secured  for  their  distinguished  author  a  world- 
wide reputation,  could  have  escaped  your  observation ; 
and  it  was  hoped  that  you  would  have  had  the  good  sense 
and  humility  to  have  imitated  the  example  of  one  of  the 
most  illustrious  of  our  patriots  and  statesmen,  (Mr.  Van 
Buren,)  and  have  publicly  declared  that  you  considered  it 
«  glory  enough  to  follow  in  the  footsteps  of  your  illustri- 
ous predecessor."  Such  were  the  anticipations  of  many, 
both  Whigs  and  Democrats,  at  the  time  it  was  announced 
that  General  Taylor  had  offered  you  a  seat  in  the  cabinet. 
How  these  expectations  have  been  disappointed  is  the 
subject  of  daily  remark,  and  is  known  to  all.  In  mention- 
ing, as  I  have,  your  immediate  predecessor,  (Mr.  Walker,) 
and  the  happy  effects  of  his  measures  upon  the  welfare 
and  prosperity  of  the  country,  I  do  not  speak  as  a  personal 
friend  or  partisan,  but  express  only  the  sentiments  and 
convictions  of  the  candid  and  intelligent  of  both  political 
parties.  The  just  and  judicious  tariff,  which  he  prepared 
and  recommended  to  the  adoption  of  congress ;  the  life, 
energy,  and  order  which  he  infused  into  his  department  of 
the  government ;  the  valuable  statistics  which  he  caused 
to  be  collected  to  guide  the  legislature  in  their  action 


FREE  TRADE  AND  PROTECTION. 

upon  the  difficult  questions  of  finance  and  revenue ;  the 
introduction  of  the  warehouse  system,  and,  above  all,  the 
distinguished  and  unrivalled  ability,  by  which  he  sustained 
the  credit  of  the  country  and  supplied  the  means  for  con- 
ducting a  foreign  and  expensive  war,  (negotiating  most  of 
the  public  loans  at  a  premium,)  have  extorted  the  admi- 
ration of  those  who  differed  most  with  the  secretary  in  a 
political  point  of  view,  and  can  never  be  forgotten  by  the 
nation.  The  merchants  of -New  York,  of  both  political 
parties,  testified  their  approbation  by  tendering  him  a 
public  dinner;  and,  whatever  part  of  the  country  he 
visited,  he  was  received  as  a  public  benefactor. 

Such  are  a  few  of  the  measures  of  that  minister  and 
statesman,  whose  revenue  system  you  would  subvert  and 
destroy  by  recommending  a  new  and  different  tariff;  by 
dismissing  from  the  public  service  without  the  least  cause 
of  complaint  most  of  the  collectors,  public  appraisers,  and 
other  officials,  in  whom  he  reposed  the  greatest  confidence ; 
and  by  every  other  method  in  your  power ;  and  all  this, 
too,  by  the  most  reckless  violation  of  the  pledges  volun- 
tarily given  by  the  President,  your  superior,  who,  in  his 
inaugural  address,  declared,  "  So  far  as  it  is  possible  to  be 
informed,  I  shall  make  honesty,  capacity,  and  fidelity,  indis- 
pensable prerequisites  to  the  bestowal  of  office ;  and  the 
absence  of  either  of  those  qualities  shall  be  deemed  suffi- 
cient cause  for  removal."  Of  course,  then,  the  thousands, 
who  have  been  removed  under  the  most  prescriptive 
administration,  which  has  existed  since  the  commencement 
of  the  government,  have  all  fallen  under  one  of  these 
categories,  and  are  deemed  unworthy  to  serve  their  coun- 
try longer. 

"  Credat  Judseus  Appella, 
Non  ego." 

But  you  assign  what  some  persons  may  consider  satisfac- 


228  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

i 

tory  reasons  for  these  changes,  and  you  assert  that  the 
imposts  on  some  articles,  especially  iron,  coal,  woollens, 
cottons,  etc.,  are  too  low  and  variable ;  that  specific  are  to 
be  preferred  to  ad  valorem  duties  ;  and  that,  in  adjusting 
the  same,  protection  should  be  afforded  to  such  domestic 
manufactures  as  require  it.  You  have  not  ventured  to 
designate  the  amount  of  protection,  and,  unlike  some  pro- 
tectionists, who  would  destroy  our  foreign  trade  and  com- 
merce altogether,  you  intimate  that,  "  if  required,  you  will 
hereafter  present  a  plan  in  detail."  Fearing,  probably, 
that  you  might  alarm  your  patient  by  practising  upon  the 
Allopathic  system,  you  have  adopted  the  Homoeopathic, 
and  recornmend  only  "  unknown  and  indefinite  portions  " 
of  protection  for  the  body  politic.  By  this  you  betray 
the  weakness  of  your  cause,  and  give  occasion  to  your 
opponents  to  doubt  if  you  have  confidence  in  your  own 
specifics ;  for  surely,  if  a  little  protection  be  such  a  good 
thing,  a  great  deal  could  not  fail  to  be  much  better ;  and 
a  total  prohibition  of  importations,  as  was  recommended 
some  years  since  by  a  distinguished  manufacturer  and  pro- 
tectionist in  Boston,  Mr.  Brown,  would  be  best  of  all. 

Mr.  Baldwin,  in  1824,  and  Mr.  Clay,  in  1828,  had  no 
scruples  of  this  kind,  and  some  of  the  duties  then  recom- 
mended were  prohibitory,  as  they  intended  they 
should  be.  The  duty  on  bar  and  rolled  iron,  for  instance, 
by  the  tariff  of  1828,  was  twenty-two  and  thirty-seven  dol- 
lars per  ton.  The  legislation  upon  this  article,  (iron,) 
has  been  of  a  character  truly  unique.  The  duty  upon 
it  has  been  changed  by  nearly  every  tariff  adopted  by 
congress,  and  the  same  individuals  have  sometimes  voted 
for  raising  it,  and  at  other  times  for  lowering  it,  actuated 
by  motives,  which  all  may  easily  imagine,  but  which  need 
not  now  be  characterized.  When,  for  instance,  in  1824,  it 
was  proposed  in  congress,  to  raise  the  duty  on  this  article 
from  fifteen  to  twenty- two  and  a  half  dollars  a  ton,  Mr. 


FREE  TRADE  AND  PROTECTION. 

•Webster  inveighed  against  it  with  all  the  power  of  his 
arguments  and  eloquence.  "  The  present  duty,"  he  said? 
"  on  the  imported  article,  is  fifteen  dollars  a  ton  •  and  as  this 
duty  causes,  of  course,  an  equivalent  augmentation  of  the 
price  of  the  home  manufacture,  the  whole  increase  of 
price  is  equal  to  seven  hundred  and  fifty  thousand  dollars 
annually.  This  sum  we  pay  on  a  raw  material,  and  on  an 
absolute  necessary  of  life.  The  bill  proposes  to  raise  the 
duty  from  fifteen  to  twenty-two  and  a  half  dollars  a  ton? 
which  would  be  equal  to  one  million  one  hundred  and 
twenty-five  thousand  dollars,  on  the  whole  annual  con- 
sumption ;  so  that,  suppose  the  point  of  prohibition  which 
is  aimed  at  by  some  gentlemen  to  be  attained,  the  con- 
sumers of  the  article  would  pay  this  last  mentioned  sum 
every  year  to  the  producers  of  it,  over  and  above  the 
price  at  which  they  could  supply  themselves  with  the 
same  article  from  other  sources.  There  would  be  no  miti- 
gation to  this  burthen,  except  from  the  prospect,  (whatever 
that  might  be,)  that  iron  would  fall  in  value  by  domestic 
competition,  after  the  importation  should  be  prohibited. 
It  will  be  easy,  I  think,  to  shew  that  it  cannot  fall,  and 
supposing  for  the  present  that  it  shall  not,  the  result  will 
be,  that  we  shall  pay,  annually,  a  sum  of  one  million  one 
hundred  and  twenty-five  thousand  dollars,  constantly 
augmented,  too,  by  increased  consumption  of  the  article, 
to  support  a  business  which  will  not  support  itself.  It 
is  of  no  consequence  to  the  argument  that  this  sum  is 
expended  at  home ;  so  it  would  be,  if  we  taxed  the  people 
to  support  any  other  useless  and  expensive  establishment ; 
to  build  another  capitol,  for  example,  or  to  incur  an  unne- 
cessary expense  of  any  sort."  "  These  are  sound  princi- 
ples," says  a  distinguished  writer  upon  political  economy, 
Henry  Lee,  Esq.  "  They  may  be  denied,  renounced,  and 
even  assailed,  by  those  who  once  maintained  them,  but 
they  cannot  be  subverted.  Talents  and  ingenuity  can  do 


230  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

much.  They  can,  when  misapplied,  as  they  too  often  are,* 
mislead  the  selfish  and  the  ignorant;  but  they  cannot 
unsettle  or  overturn  those  original  and  self-evident  princi- 
ples which  lie  at  the  foundation  of  truth  and  justice." 
These  memorable  words  of  Mr.  Webster,  were  addressed, 
twenty-six  years  ago,  to  the  assembled  wisdom  of  the 
nation,  and  they  will  favorably  compare  with  any  thing 
which  can  be  found  in  the  profound  works  of  Adam  Smith, 
Ricardo,  McCulloch,  or  any  other  writer  on  political  econ- 
omy. They  were,  no  doubt,  at  the  time,  the  sincere  con- 
victions of  Mr.  Webster's  mind,  fixed  there  by  extensive 
reading,  reflection,  and  observation.  They  are  a  complete 
refutation  of  the  sophisms  daily  advanced  by  manufac- 
turers, essayists,  politicians,  and  others  in  our  midst,  and 
should,  it  seems  to  me,  have  been  well  considered  by  you, 
before  you  decided  to  recommend  an  increase  of  the  duty 
upon  iron. 

The  farther  consideration  of  this  subject  will  be  con- 
tinued in  my  next  communication. 

I  remain,  very  respectfully, 

Your  most  ob't  servant, 

S.  D.  BRADFORD. 
To  the  Hon.  WILLIAM  M.  MEREDITH, 

Secretary  of  the  Treasury,  Washington,  D.  C. 


WEST  ROXBURY,  (near  Boston,) 

February  2d,  1850. 

SIR, — Mr.  Webster,  when  he  made  the  speech,  from 
which  my  last  communication  contained  an  extract,  had 
been,  for  several  years,  a  member  of  congress,  had  placed 
himself  in  the  foremost  rank  of  statesmen,  and  his  argu- 
ments urged,  at  that  time,  against  protective  and  prohibi- 
tory duties,  have  lost  none  of  their  force  by  lapse  of 


FREE  TRADE  AND  PROTECTION. 

years.  I  cannot  help  thinking  they  are  his  real  opinions 
now;  and  I  am  not  without  a  hope  that  he  may  yet 
declare  them  to  be  so.  He  has  an  illustrious  example  in 
Sir  Robert  Peel,  who,  having  been  a  member  of  parlia- 
ment for  over  thirty  years,  and  having  always  sustained 
protective  and  prohibitory  duties  on  corn,  and  nearly  all 
other  articles  of  import,  had  the  magnanimity,  at  the  age 
of  fifty-eight,  to  make  an  honest  confession  of  his  error, 
and  to  become  a  leader  in*  the  cause  of  free  trade.  He 
made  one  of  his  last  great  speeches  in  parliament,  holding  , 
in  his  hand  a  volume  of  Adam  Smith,  and  recommending 
it  as  a  text-book,  for  the  study  and  guidance  of  all  states- 
men. I  am  not  willing  to  believe  that  Mr.  Webster  is 
second  in  magnanimity  to  his  illustrious  cotemporary  on 
the  other  side  of  the  Atlantic.  I  do  not  forget  his  votes 
in  congress  since  1824,  nor  his  elaborate  speech  in  Faneuil 
Hall,  in  October,  1848,  against  the  sub-treasury,  and  the 
tariff  of  1846 ;  nor  his  plea  for  the  iron  masters  of  Penn- 
sylvania, in  which,  however,  he  omitted  to  mention  what 
rate  of  duty  he  would  consider  sufficient  on  iron ;  but  on 
that  point,  we  may  probably  expect  him  to  define  his  posi- 
tion during  the  present  session  of  congress.  Let  every 
traveller  over  our  six  thousand  miles  of  railroads,  ponder 
these  calculations  of  Mr.  Webster,  made  in  1824,  and  ask 
himself  to  whom  he  is  indebted  for  the  facility  he  pos- 
sesses of  safe  and  rapid  locomotion,  and  of  the  transporta- 
tion of  commodities  at  the  moderate  price  which  he  is 
called  upon  to  pay.  Surely,  not  to  the  manufacturers  of 
domestic  railroad  iron  ;  for  they,  before  the  passage  of  the 
tariff  of  1846,  and  the  fall  of  the  metal  in  England  and 
Wales,  had  fixed  their  price  at  seventy  dollars  a  ton ; 
whereas,  the  article  can  now  be  had  for  forty  dollars. 
Take,  for  instance,  the  railroad  now  in  process  of  construc- 
tion from  New  York  to  Albany,  by  the  Hudson  river,  esti- 
mated to  require  eighteen  thousand  tons  of  rails.  The 


WORKS   OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

difference  between  the  domestic  price  some  time  since,  and 
the  foreign  value  now,  being  thirty  dollars  per  ton,  would 
amount  to  the  sum  of  five  hundred  and  forty  thousand  dol- 
lars on  that  enterprise. 

That  you  should  have  proposed,  in  your  report,  to  im- 
pose a  duty  upon  some  of  the  articles  which  are  now  free, 
to  provide  a  larger  revenue,  might,  perhaps,  have  been 
expected;  but  that  you  should  have  recommended  an  addi- 
tion to  that  on  iron  and  coal,  may  well  excite  our  special 
wonder.  Who  does  not  know  that  this  commodity,  (iron,) 
is  absolutely  essential  for  the  machines  of  manufacturers, 
for  all  the  implements  of  agriculture,  and  all  the  tools  of 
the  mechanic  arts  ?  It  is  largely  used,  also,  in  the  manu- 
facture of  nails,  in  which  we  had  arrived,  many  years  ago, 
to  such  a  degree  of  excellence,  that  they  had  become  an 
article  of  export,  and  a  single  firm,  in  a  neighboring  county, 
manufactured  of  them,  forty-five  thousand  casks  a  year,  as 
long  ago  as  1832.  That  the  manufacturers  of  cottons, 
woollens,  machinery,  etc.,  should  favor  an  increase  of  duty 
on  iron  or  coal,  can  only  be  accounted  for,  by  supposing 
that  they  have  received  pledges  from  the  owners  of  those 
articles,  that  they  will  vote  for  representatives,  who  will 
use  their  influence  to  increase  the  duty  on  the  commodi- 
ties in  which  they  are  interested.  It  is  recorded,  that  "  the 
annual  consumption  of  coal  at  Lowell  only,  was,  several 
years  ago,  (1843,)  six  hundred  thousand  bushels;"  and  in 
another  statistical  account  of  the  same  place,  compiled 
some  years  since,  it  is  stated  "  that  the  Locks  and  Canal 
Company  there,  employ  five  hundred  laborers,  and,  some- 
times, twice  as  many,  and  manufacture,  annually,  one 
thousand  two  hundred  and  twenty-five  tons  of  wrought 
iron."  How  can  they  expect  to  supply  the  home  demand 
with  cottons  and  woollens,  and  to  be  able  to  export  the 
former  with  a  profit,  having  to  pay  for  iron  the  price  set 
upon  it  by  the  iron  masters,  seventy  dollars  a  ton,  whilst 


FREE  TRADE  AND  PROTECTION.          %$$ 

the  same  article  is  used  by  their  competitors,  the  British, 
at  thirty  dollars  a  ton  ?  Our  ships,  too,  which  have  to 
meet  such  a  sharp  rivalry,  not  only  with  those  of  Great 
Britain,  but  with  the  cheaper  and  inferior  vessels  of  Bre- 
men, Hamburg,  Sweden,  and  Norway,  in  what  way  can 
we  so  effectually  enhance  their  cost,  as  by  adding  to  the 
price  of  iron  ?  Mr.  Webster,  in  1824,  computed  the  value 
of  that  metal  used  in  the  construction  of  a  ship  of  the 
ordinary  dimensions,  at  from*  four  thousand  to  ^  six  thou- 
sand dollars. 

The  annual  production  of  iron  in  the  United  States,  is 
now  estimated  at  eight  hundred  thousand  tons.  The 
importation  varies  from  year  to  year,  according  to  circum- 
stances. It  may  amount,  the  present  year,  to  three  hundred 
thousand  tons.  The  annual  consumption  of  this  country 
is,  by  some  very  intelligent  iron  masters,  estimated  as  high 
as  one  million  of  tons;  and  by  others,  at  somewhat  less. 
The  correct  amount  must,  of  course,  be  conjectural  only ; 
but  all  agree  it  is  very  great,  is  yearly  increasing  almost 
beyond  computation,  under  the  present  moderate  cost  and 
duty,  and  is  constantly  entering  more  and  more  into  the 
construction  of  dwelling-houses,  warehouses,  bridges,  etc., 
where  its  high  price  once  precluded  its  being  used.  The 
import  of  iron  into  the  port  of  New  York,  from  the  1st 
of  March  to  the  1st  of  September,  1849,  is  stated,  by  that 
valuable  commercial  paper,  the  New  York  Journal  of  Com- 
merce,  to  have  been  one  hundred  and  twelve  thousand  and 
ten  tons,  valued  at  a  cost  of  four  million,  one  hundred  and 
fifty-five  thousand,  four  hundred  and  eighty  dollars,  and 
fifty-eight  cents.  The  price  having  fallen  to  a  low  figure 
in  England,  on  account  of  the  deranged  state  of  commer- 
cial affairs  since  1847,  and  the  railroad  panic,  which  has 
caused  the  suspension  or  abandonment  of  so  many  rail- 
ways, the  American  manufacturers  have  found  it  impossi- 
ble to  realize  the  price,  which,  at  one  time,  they  had 

30 


234  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

expected  to  obtain,  and  attribute  their  disappointment  to 
the  tariff  of  1846,  which  imposes  a  duty  on  iron  of  thirty 
per  cent.  The  actual  duty,  paid  since  1846,  is  estimated 
at  about  nine  dollars  a  ton ;  whereas,  had  it  been  fifteen 
dollars,  it  is  alleged,  by  some  persons,  that  they  might 
have  continued  the  business,  and  have  received  a  fair  com- 
pensation. It  is  presumed  that  this  calculation  must  have 
been  made  when  the  price  of  bar  iron  in  England  was 
nine  pounds  a  ton.  The  price  recently  paid  having  been 
five  pounds,  sixteen  shillings,  eleven  pence,  it  could  be 
imported  to  cost  only  forty-eight  dollars,  under  a  duty  of 
fifteen  dollars,  so  that  the  iron  masters  could  scarcely 
expect  consumers  to  pay  the  price  required  two  years 
ago — seventy  dollars  a  ton.  It  is  a  recorded  fact,  that  the 
Hudson  River  Railroad  Company,  of  New  York,  contracted 
with  a  company  in  New  Jersey,  in  August,  1847,  for  six 
thousand  tons  of  rails,  at  sixty-seven  dollars,  fifty  cents, 
on  which  they  afterwards  paid  a  considerable  sum  as  an 
indemnity,  for  having  a  part  of  the  order  cancelled  after 
the  fall  of  the  metal  abroad. 

If,  under  these  circumstances,  some  of  the  iron  masters 
of  Pennsylvania,  or  other  states,  have  been  obliged  to  limit 
their  production,  or  where  the  capital  employed  had  been 
borrowed,  they  have  been  compelled,  in  some  instances,  to 
discontinue  their  operations  altogether,  the  occurrence 
need  not  excite  any  surprise,  as  the  same  thing  is  con- 
stantly happening  in  England  and  Wales,  into  which  coun 
tries  the  usual  annual  amount  of  iron,  imported  princi- 
pally from  Sweden,  and  paying  a  duty  of  thirty  shillings 
sterling  a  ton,  is  only  about  twenty  thousand  tons ;  so  that 
the  iron  masters  may  be  said  to  have  the  almost  entire 
supply  of  the  home  market.  Digging  for  gold,  silver, 
copper,  or  lead,  has  always  been  amongst  the  most  hazard- 
ous and  uncertain  of  human  pursuits.  The  most  frightful 
revulsions  often  occur  amongst  persons  engaged  in  that 


FREE  TRADE  AND  PROTECTION.  235 

kind  of  business.  At  one  time,  they  make  money  very 
fast,  and  then  lose  it  again  as  rapidly  as  it  had  been  made. 
It  was  stated  in  England,  in  1839,  that,  out  of  the  several 
large  companies  engaged,  in  1837,  in  working  the  Cornwall 
copper  mines,  (the  produce  of  which  was  at  that  time  about 
one  million,  five  hundred  thousand  pounds  sterling  per 
annum,)  nearly  every  one  was  in  difficulty,  and  a  pecuniary 
crisis  during  that  year. 

Such  was  the  depression  fn  iron  of  all  kinds  in  1843, 
and  so  low  was  the  price  in  consequence  of  the  inability 
of  the  iron  masters  to  hold  their  stocks,  that  the  Messrs. 
Rothschild,  of  London,  were  said  to  have  purchased  a 
large  quantity  of  pig  iron  in  the  Clyde  at  thirty  shillings 
sterling  a  ton.  It  was  worth,  a  short  time  previous,  four 
pounds ;  and  it  sold  in  1825  at  from  twelve  to  thirteen 
pounds  a  ton!  It  is  absurd  to  assert  that  protecting 
the  article  would  prevent  these  fearful  fluctuations. 
It  would  be  far  more  likely  to  increase  them.  The 
most  severe  crisis  our  cotton  and  woollen  manufac- 
turers ever  passed  through,  was  after  the  passage 
of  the  high  and  impolitic  tariff  of  1828,  the  paternity  of 
which  has  generally  been  ascribed  to  Henry  Clay.  Some 
of  the  wealthiest  families  in  New  England,  especially  in 
Boston,  who,  stimulated  by  the  unwise  policy  of  the 
government,  had  entered  largely  into  the  business,  were 
reduced  to  absolute  want;  and  some  of  our  richest  cap- 
italists to  a  state  of  the  most  unenviable  embarrassment. 

The  iron  masters  here,  then,  must  do  as  those  engaged 
in  the  same  business  do  in  England  and  Wales,  when  the 
price  of  the  metal  is  low,  introduce  improved  and  cheaper 
methods  of  manufacturing  it,  extinguish  such  blasts  as  are 
not  wanted,  and  more  than  supply  the  demand,  and  wait 
for  that  improvement  which  is  sure  to  come  soon,  and 
will  give  them  employment  again.  Calling  upon  the 
government  to  lay  new  burdens  on  one  class  of  the  peo- 


236  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

pie  for  the  benefit  of  another,  "  to  support  a  business  (to 
use  Mr.  Webster's  expressive  words)  which  will  not  sup- 
port itself,"  would  be  neither  just  nor  expedient,  and  in 
the  end  would  prove  injurious  to  the  manufacturers  them- 
selves. This  is  proved  by  the  history  of  similar  attempts 
in  England  and  in  other  countries. 

Some  facts,  which  I  have  to  adduce  in  confirmation  of 
this  assertion,  and  some  further  observations  upon  iron  in 
general,  will  form  the  subject  of  my  next  communica- 
tion. 

I  remain,  very  respectfully, 

Your  most  obedient  servant, 

S.    D.   BRADFORD. 
To  the  Hon.  WILLIAM  M.  MEREDITH. 

Secretary  of  the  Treasury,  Washington,  D.  C. 


WEST  ROXBURY,  (near  Boston,) 

February  4th,  1850. 

SIR, — I  promised  in  my  last  letter  to  adduce  some  facts 
to  prove  that  high  protective  or  prohibitory  duties  are 
injurious  to  the  manufacturers  themselves,  and  also  to 
offer  some  further  remarks  upon  the  subject  of  iron. 

Let  us  look,  then,  at  the  example  of  England,  which  for 
so  many  centuries  pursued  a  restrictive  and  prohibitory 
policy.  In  1840,  the  House  of  Commons  appointed  a  com- 
mittee comprising  the  names  of  some  of  the  most  eminent 
statesmen  in  the  kingdom,  to  thoroughly  investigate  the 
restrictive  system.  Amongst  a  great  number  of  witnesses 
who  were  called,  was  Mr.  William  Leaf,  an  extensive  silk 
merchant  in  London,  who,  in  speaking  of  the  silk  trade, 
thus  testified :  "  When  I  first  knew  Manchester,  which 
was  about  the  year  1816  or  1817,  there  was  but  one  silk 
manufacturer  there,  and  he  upon  a  very  small  scale,  and 


FREE  TRADE  AND  PROTECTION.  237 

even  up  to  the  year  1825,  when  the  reduction  on  silk 
took  place,  there  were  but  ten  silk  manufacturers  in 
Manchester.  I  estimated  the  whole  return  of  Manches- 
ter in  silk  goods  then  at  four  hundred  and  fifty  thousand 
pounds,  and  now  (1840)  the  return  in  goods,  entirely  silk, 
is  from  one  million  six  hundred  thousand  pounds,  to  one 
million  eight  hundred  thousand  pounds  per  annum." 
He  added,  "The  distress,  which  so  frequently  visited 
Spitalfields,  during  the  tertn  of  prohibition,  has  never 
returned  to  the  same  extent  since  French  goods  were 
introduced.  Though  silk  is  at  this  moment  higher  than 
it  has  been  for  the  last  ten  years,  yet  goods  range  now 
from  twenty  to  thirty  per  cent,  lower  than  they  did  in 
1825  and  1826,  arising  entirely  from  improved  modes  of 
manufacture,  stimulated  by  the  competition  arising  from 
a  freer  state  of  trade." 

And  upon  the  same  occasion,  the  late  James  Deacon 
Hume,  on  being  asked  if  it  was  his  opinion  "  that  protec- 
tion is  always  imposed  at  the  expense  of  the  consumer," 
answered  "  I  think  that  is  manifest.  I  have  always  con- 
sidered that  the  increase  of  price  in  consequence  of  pro- 
tection amounted  to  a  tax.  I  pay  it  with  regret,  because 
it  does  not  go  to  the  revenue  of  the  country.  I  must  be 
taxed  a  second  time  for  the  state.  It  is  tempting  parties 
to  embark  in  a  trade  by  a  fictitious  support,  which,  in  the 
end,  may  prove  a  fallacious  one.  I  have  often  wondered 
how  any  rulers  could  consent  to  incur  the  responsibility 
of  such  a  policy."  The  authority  of  Mr.  Hume,  as  a 
sound  political  economist,  and,  what  some  persons  may 
value  much  more,  as  one  who  had  had  the  largest  experi- 
ence, having  been  in  the  British  customs  thirty-eight 
years,  and  for  eleven  years  a  member  of  the  board  of 
trade,  acting  as  the  very  high  priest  of  monopoly  and 
protection,  at  a  time  when  the  duties  were  nearly  all  pro- 
tective or  prohibitory,  may  be  considered,  I  think,  as 


238  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

beyond  appeal ;  and  I  would  venture  to  recommend  his 
reasonings  and  statements  upon  the  subject  now  under 
consideration,  (should  they  have  escaped  your  notice,) 
to  your  particular  and  careful  attention.  He  is  often 
quoted  as  an  authority  by  Sir  Robert  Peel;  and  most  of  the 
changes  recommended  by  him  in  the  British  tariff  in  1840, 
have  been  since  adopted,  and  have  produced  the  most 
beneficial  effects. 

But  to  return  to  the  subject  of  iron.  Many  persons,  I 
apprehend,  are  not  aware  how  heavy  the  duty  and 
charges  upon  it  are  already,  amounting  to  fifty-seven  and 
a  half  per  cent,  ad  valorem  ;  so  that  a  ton  of  iron,  costing 
in  England  five  pounds  sixteen  shillings  and  eleven  pence, 
cannot  be  landed  in  this  country  under  forty  dollars  and 
ninety-two  cents.  Some  manufacturers,  it  is  said,  have 
admitted  that  these  charges  are  high  enough,  but  demand 
that  the  duty  should  be  specific  so  as  always  to  remain 
the  same,  or  should  be  regulated  by  a  sliding  scale.  Thus 
far,  however,  I  have  seen  no  good  reason  assigned  for  the 
adoption  of  either  plan.  The  ad  valorem  system  has  many 
and  great  advantages  over  all  others,  on  which  account 
it  was  adopted  by  Mr.  Hamilton  at  the  commencement 
of  our  republic,  and  has  been  continued  ever  since.  The 
protectionists  themselves,  whatever  they  may  allege 
against  it  now,  must  have  approved  the  system  highly, 
when  they  arranged  the  tariff  of  1842,  (of  which  they 
always  speak  in  such  terms  of  panegyric,)  as  out  of  a 
revenue  of  one  hundred  and  two  millions  of  dollars  col- 
lected under  it,  sixty  millions  were  levied  upon  the  ad 
valorem  principle. 

As  respects  adopting  a  sliding  scale,  that  has  become  a 
by-word.  It  sounds  harshly  to  the  ears.  It  was  in 
England  a  weapon  taken  from  the  armory  of  want  and 
starvation,  to  compel  the  poor  to  buy  dear  bread,  or  none 
at  all. 


FREE  TRADE  AND  PROTECTION.          239 

Let  it  not  be  introduced  into  this  land  of  plenty,  to 
enhance  the  price  of  iron,  or  any  other  necessary  of  life. 
Why  should  the  government  become  the  makers  of  sliding 
scales,  or  of  any  other  contrivances  to  guard  the  iron 
masters  against  those  fluctuations  in  trade,  to  which  they 
are  subject  in  common  with  the  agriculturist,  the  merchant, 
and  the  manufacturers  of  other  articles  ?  The  constitution 
authorizes  congress  "  to  lay  and  collect  taxes,  duties, 
imposts,  and  excises  "  for  revenue,  and  not  for  protection. 
If  by  impolitic  laws  it  compels  one  individual  to  purchase 
of  another  a  domestic  production  at  a  higher  price  than 
he  could  procure  one  of  foreign  manufacture  of  the  same 
quality,  is  not  the  buyer  impoverished  to  the  extent  of  the 
difference  in  the  price,  and  is  the  country  made  richer  for 
it  ?  This  and  similar  questions  have  been  often  asked,  and 
it  is  time  they  should  receive  a  satisfactory  answer. 

But  it  seems  that  the  iron  masters  did  not  think  it  expe- 
dient to  await  the  assembling  of  congress ;  and  the  Phila- 
delphia papers  announced,  in  November  last,  that  at  a 
meeting  of  the  iron  masters  of  Pennsylvania,  assembled 
at  Pittsburgh,  the  following  resolution  was  proposed  and 
adopted : 

Resolved,  That  it  is  the  sense  of  this  convention,  at  the  present 
state  of  the  foreign  market,  that  it  will  require  a  duty  of  ten  dollars 
a  ton  on  pig  iron,  and  twenty  dollars  per  ton  on  common  bar,  and 
a  corresponding  increase  on  all  other  iron  and  manufactures  of  iron, 
in  proportion  to  cost  of  make,  to  protect  the  American  market. 

The  present  cost  of  pig  iron  in  England  and  Wales  being 
two  pounds,  eleven  shillings,  sixpence,  or  eleven  dollars, 
forty-four  one-hundredths,  the  duty  called  for  amounts  to 
about  eighty-seven  and  a  half  per  cent,  on  the  value 
abroad ;  and  if  there  be  added  to  this  the  other  expenses 
of  importation,  premium  on  exchange,  freight,  insurance, 
etc.,  amounting  to  twenty-seven  and  a  half  per  cent,  more, 


240  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

the  whole  protection  claimed  is  one  hundred  and  fifteen 
per  cent. !  The  present  cost  of  bar  iron  being  five  pounds, 
sixteen  shillings,  eleven  pence,  or  twenty-five  dollars, 
ninety-seven  one-hundredths,  the  duty  asked  for  is  equal  to 
about  seventy-seven  per  cent,  on  the  foreign  value,  or 
adding  the  other  expenses  of  importation,  equal  to  a  pro- 
tective duty  of  one  hundred  and  four  and  a  half  per  cent. ! 

No  one  can  accuse  these  Pennsylvania  gentlemen  of 
excessive  modesty  in  the  call  they  have  made  for  legisla- 
tive aid ;  but  I  have  deemed  this  meeting  worthy  of  par- 
ticular mention,  on  account  of  the  remarkable  similarity 
of  the  proceedings  at  Pittsburg,  in  1849,  to  those  which 
took  place  at  Harrisburg,  in  the  same  state,  in  August, 
1827.  Every  one  may  not  remember  the  famous  conven- 
tion which  assembled  there,  to  stimulate  the  government 
to  enact  the  tariff  of  1828.  Thirteen  states  were  repre- 
sented by  delegates.  Messrs.  H.  Niles,  from  Maryland, 
C.  J.  Ingersoll,  T.  Ewing,  and  J.  Tallmadge  were  of  the 
number.  They  assembled  in  the  "  splendid  hall "  of  the 
state ;  and  after  having  made  the  protestations  of  patriot- 
ism arid  duty  to  their  constituents,  and  "  the  American 
system,"  usual  in  similar  assemblies,  called  together  to 
overawe  the  government,  they  proceeded  to  business. 
Mr.  H.  Mies,  of  Maryland,  was  selected  to  prepare  "an 
address  to.  the  people  of  the  United  States,"  in  which  he 
made  the  following  declaration,  in  the  spirit  of  which  our 
legislators  have  since  made  so  many  unjust  and  prohibitory 
laws.  "  The  constitution  of  the  United  States,"  he  said, 
"  was  made  for  the  fanners,  manufacturers,  and  mechanics ; 
not  for  the  merchants ;  the  last  being  only  a  small  number 
of  the  whole  ! " 

This  new  method  of  expounding  the  constitution  by  the 
gentlemen  from  Maryland,  may  possibly  surprise  some 
persons  not  so  well  versed  in  the  study  of  that  instrument. 
It  would  probably  have  produced  quite  a  sensation  in 


FREE  TRADE  AND  PROTECTION. 

1787,  when  the  convention  assembled  in  Philadelphia,  to 
form  a  constitution,  were  about  to  adopt  the  eighth  section 
of  article  first,  "to  regulate  commerce  with  foreign 
nations,  and  among  the  several  states,"  had  some  member 
risen  in  his  place  and  opposed  it,  alleging  that  "  the  con- 
stitution was  not  to  be  made  for  the  merchants,  they  being 
only  a  small  portion  of  the  whole."  Another  member 
charged  with  making  a  report  upon  "the  British  trade 
and  prohibitory  laws,"  in  speaking  of  the  corn  laws  and 
other  prohibitory  imposts  of  England,  said,  "Were  the 
British  ports  now  open  to  the  reception  of  our  grain  at  a 
fair  rate  of  duty,  the  fee  of  Pennsylvania  would  be  worth 
a  hundred  millions  of  dollars  more  than  it  now  is,  and  her 
one  million,  two  hundred  thousand  freemen  would  rejoice? 
whilst  the  sweat  poured  down  their  manly  brows,  in  the 
fatness  of  their  fields,  the  capacity  of  their  barns,  and  just 
reward  of  their  honest  and  honorable  labor.  We  do  not 
speak  without  thought,  for  if  by  the  increased  demand 
abroad  the  price  of  flour  should  be  advanced,  as  it  certainly 
would  be,  that  advance  would  be  obtained  on  all  the  sur- 
plus products  of  all  farmers,  whether  for  foreign  or  domes- 
tic use."  These  are  sound  free  trade  doctrines,  and  would, 
no  doubt,  receive  the  full  concurrence  of  Mr.  Cobden  or 
Mr.  Walker.  But  if  the  fee  of  Pennsylvania  would  have 
been  worth  in  1827  a  hundred  millions  of  dollars  more, 
"  if  the  British  would  have  opened  their  ports  to  our 
grain  at  a  fair  rate  of  duty,"  what,  it  may  be  inquired, 
may  the  value  be  now,  in  the  opinion  of  the  same  honora- 
ble member,  and  of  the  protectionists  in  general,  when 
not  only  our  grain  and  cotton,  but  most  of  our  provisions 
also,  are  admitted  without  any  duty  whatever?  Is  it 
generous,  is  it  honest,  under  such  circumstances,  to  call 
upon  the  government  to  increase  the  duty  upon  any 
article  produced  by  Great  Britain,  beyond  the  rate 

31 


WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

required  to  raise  the  revenue  necessary  for  the  support 
of  government,  and  the  gradual  extinction  of  the  national 
debt? 

But  what  especially  deserves  our  notice  in  the  proceed- 
ings of  the  convention  of  1827,  is  the  resolution  offered 
and  adopted  upon  iron,  which  recommended  an  increase 
of  the  duty  from  eighteen  dollars  to  twenty-two  dollars 
and  a  half  a  ton,  "  which  would  really  have  the  effect, 
it  was  said,  to  furnish  the  article  cheaper  to  the  con- 
sumer, because  the  home  market  would  be  secured  for 
the  home  supply."  As  the  price  of  bar  iron  in  Great 
Britain  at  that  time  (1827,)  was  nine  pounds,  ten  shillings, 
instead  of  five  pounds,  sixteen  shillings,  and  eleven  pence, 
its  present  value,  the  duty  then  asked  for  was  only  about 
fifty  per  cent,  instead  of  seventy-seven,  the  rate  now 
required.  What  a  comment  do  these  proceedings  offer 
upon  the  allegations  so  often  made  by  the  protectionists, 
that  "by  the  aid  of  a  protecting  duty  to  sustain  and 
encoiirage  the  first  attempts  of  an  infant  manufacture, 
the  assistance  of  the  government  will  soon  cease  to  be 
required,  and  that  competition  amongst  the  manufac- 
turers themselves  will  insure  at  all  times  an  ample  supply 
of  a  superior  quality,  and  at  a  reduced  price !  " 

Does  not  this  seem  to  prove  that  protected  manufac- 
turers are  like  spoiled  children — never  satisfied  with  any 
given  quantity  of  kindness,  but  always  clamoring  for 
more?  In  the  latter,  as  in  the  former  case,  the  only 
expedient  method  of  proceeding,  is  to  act  with  firmness 
and  decision,  and  to  all  unreasonable  requests  to  return 
a  prompt  and  peremptory  answer  in  the  negative.  This 
will  be  the  duty  of  the  Congress  now  assembled  at  Wash- 
ington ;  and  the  people,  their  constituents,  will  not  fail 
to  watch  their  proceedings  with  vigilance. 

In  my  next  communication,  I  propose  to  point  out  the 


FREE  TRADE  AND  PROTECTION.  243 

causes  which  have  produced  the  present   depression  in 
the  iron  business,  and  to  conclude  the  observations  I  have 
to  offer  upon  the  proposal  to  increase  the  duty  on  iron. 
I  remain,  very  respectfully, 

Your  most  obedient  servant, 

S.  D.  BRADFORD. 
To  the  Hon.  WILLIAM  M.  MEREDITH, 

Secretary  of  the  Treasury,  Washington,  D.  C. 


WEST  ROXBURY,  (near  Boston,) 

February  5th,  1850. 

SIR, — I  proceed  now  to  state  the  causes  which  have,  in 
my  opinion,  produced  the  present  depression  in  the  iron 
trade ;  and  I  would  remark  that  if,  as  is  asserted  by  some 
persons,  the  business  be  in  a  very  unsatisfactory  condi- 
tion, so  that  some  masters  have  curtailed  their  operations, 
and  others,  who  depended  upon  borrowed  capital,  pos- 
sessed fewer  local  advantages,  or  did  not  avail  themselves 
of  the  best  and  most  scientific  methods  of  manufacturing, 
have  been  compelled  to  abandon  their  works  altogether, 
it  requires  no  great  wisdom  to  assign  the  cause.  It  has 
in  fact  been  assigned  in  1847,  by  the  iron  masters  them- 
selves, and  is  contained  in  two  words,  protection  and  over- 
production, caused  by  the  tariff  of  1842,  which  it  is  now 
attempted  to  restore.  I  have  before  me  a  pamphlet 
entitled  "  Pennsylvania,  the  Pioneer  of  Internal  Improve- 
ment. The  coal  and  iron  trade,  embracing  statistics  of 
Pennsylvania ;  a  series  of  articles  published  in  the  Phila- 
delphia Commercial  List,  in  1847,  prepared  by  C.  G. 
Childs,  editor."  This  pamphlet  contains  an  account  of 
several  conventions  of  the  iron  masters  from  1830,  and 
ends  with  that  called  "  The  Committee  of  the  Iron  and 
Coal  Association  of  the  State  of  Pennsylvania,  which  met 


244  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

/ 

in  Philadelphia  on  the  ninth  January,  1846 ; "  from 
whose  report  it  appears  that  up  to  1842  the  charcoal  fur- 
naces in  Pennsylvania  amounted  to  two  hundred  and  six, 
producing 

173,369  tons. 
The  anthracite  amounted  to  seven,  producing  16,487  tons, 

together,  say  189,856 

New  charcoal  furnaces  since,  67,  producing  75,200 

New  anthracite,  36,  producing  103,000 


Total,  316  furnaces,  producing  368,056 

Increase  on  old  furnaces,  37,971 

"        on  new         «  178,200 

216,171  " 

more  than  one  hundred  per  cent,  since  the  bill  of  1842, 
and  requiring  a  capital  of  fourteen  million,  six  hundred 
and  sixty-nine  thousand,  eight  hundred  and  eighteen  dol- 
lars, in  the  rude  state  of  the  metal,  and  of  twenty  million, 
two  hundred  and  one  thousand,  four  hundred  dollars,  in  its 
converted  state.  These  figures  are  taken  from  the  pamph- 
let itself. 

What  bill,  it  may  be  asked,  could  have  produced  such 
an  extraordinary  increase  as  the  above,  in  four  years  and 
three  months,  in  a  country  where  the  population  requires 
twenty-three  years  to  double  its  numbers  ?  The  answer 
is,  the  tariff  of  1842,  which  laid  a  duty  of  seventeen  dol- 
lars a  ton  on  iron  in  bars,  not  rolled,  of  twenty-five  dollars 
on  iron  rolled  and  railroad  iron,  and  of  nine  dollars  on 
pig  iron. 

In  1830,  the  production  of  iron  in  the  United  States 
was  estimated  at  only  one  hundred  and  sixty-three  thou- 
sand, five  hundred  and  forty-two  tons,  whereas,  here  in  a 
single  state,  we  find  an  increase  of  two  hundred  and  six- 
teen thousand,  one  hundred  and  seventy-one  tons  in  four 
years  and  three  months ! 

Well  might  the  editor  of  the  pamphlet  exclaim,  after 


FREE  TRADE  AND  PROTECTION.          245 

giving  the  above  statements,  and  alluding  particularly  to 
the  anthracite  furnaces,  "  the  increase  of  this  branch  of  the 
iron  trade  in  this  state,  (Pennsylvania,)  has  no  parallel 
in  history."  Who  can  wonder  that  the  iron  masters,  hav- 
ing doubled  their  production  in  the  time  mentioned,  under 
the  influence  of  the  vicious  and  impolitic  stimulus  fur- 
nished by  the  government,  should,  in  some  instances  find 
themselves  embarrassed,  and  in  want  of  sufficient  cus- 
tomers to  take  off  this  extraordinary  supply  ?  No  doubt 
in  some  cases  the  loss  of  capital  will  be  heavy,  as  must 
always  happen  when  a  revulsion  comes  in  a  business  which 
has  been  pushed  beyond  its  natural  capacity  and  bounds, 
by  what  is  called  "the  fostering  care  of  government." 
Let  it  be  a  warning  to  our  legislators,  in  all  coming  time, 
never  to  fall  into  the  same  lamentable  error  again. 

The  sum,  then,  of  the  whole  matter  is  this :  It  having 
been  ascertained,  from  an  inspection  of  the  invoices,  that 
the  average  cost  of  common  bar  iron,  imported  into  New 
York,  from  the  1st  of  March  to  the  1st  of  September, 
1849,  was  five  pounds,  sixteen  shillings,  and  eleven  pence, 
and  the  duty  and  expense  of  importation  being  fifty-seven 
and  a  half  per  cent,  ad  valorem,  the  article  can  be  laid  down 
in  any  of  our  Atlantic  cities  at  a  cost  of  forty  dollars  and 
ninety-two  cents.  The  iron  masters,  in  their  convention 
at  Pittsburg,  require  a  duty  of  twenty  dollars  per  ton, 
which  would  enhance  the  cost  to  fifty-three  dollars  for  the 
imported,  and  also  fix  the  value  of  the  domestic  article  at 
the  same,  or  a  higher  price.  If,  then,  the  annual  con- 
sumption be  eight  hundred  thousand  tons,  as  has  been 
estimated  by  some  of  the  most  extensive  manufacturers 
themselves,  and  the  demand  of  the  iron  masters  having 
been  granted,  the  people  shall  be  called  upon  to  pay  even 
fifty-three  dollars  per  ton  for  what  they  could  otherwise 
have  obtained  for  forty  dollars  and  ninety-two  cents,  the 
difference  would  amount  to  nine  million,  six  hundred  and 


246  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

sixty-four  thousand  dollars  per  annum.  If  the  manufac- 
turers could  obtain  sixty-seven  dollars  and  fifty  cents,  the 
price  asked,  and  obtained,  too,  in  August,  1847,  it  would 
amount  to  twenty-one  million,  two  hundred  and  sixty-four 
thousand  dollars. 

Not  one  dollar  of  this  large  sum  would  go  into  the  pub- 
lic treasury,  but  into  the  pockets  of  the  iron  masters,  and 
would  thus  be  a  tax  upon  the  farmers,  merchants,  and 
other  consumers  of  iron,  amounting  to  about  a  third  of 
the  annual  revenue  of  the  United  States.  Can  it  be  pos- 
sible that  any  respectable  number  of  senators  or  represent- 
atives in  congress,  will  be  found  to  vote  for  such  an  unjust 
and  unnecessary  burden  ?  We  all  remember  what  an  out- 
cry was  made  when  Mr.  Walker,  to  sustain  the  credit  of 
the  country  during  an  expensive  foreign  war,  called  for  a 
duty  of  three  millions  only,  on  tea  and  coffee,  especially  by 
our  brethren  in  the  west.  Will  they  ever  consent  to  lay 
this  heavy  duty  on  iron  imported  principally  from  the 
country  which  has  now  become  the  best  customer  for  their 
breadstuff's  and  provisions  ? 

Formerly,  the  city  of  Boston  alone  imported  from  Swe- 
den fifteen  thousand  to  seventeen  thousand  tons  of  iron 
per  annum.  The  importations  at  present  amount  to  only 
about  three  thousand  tons.  Our  annual  importations  from 
Russia  amounted,  a  few  years  since,  to  seven  thousand 
tons,  whereas,  in  1848,  they  were  only  one  thousand  tons, 
and  last  year,  were  only  six  hundred  tons. 

In  1826,  the  whole  exports  of  the  products  of  the  United 
States,  as  stated  in  1827,  by  Mr.  H.  Niles,  of  Maryland, 
amounted  to  only  twenty  million,  four  hundred  and  thir- 
teen thousand,  two  hundred  and  sixteen  dollars,  of  which, 
eighteen  million,  six  hundred  and  four  thousand,  and  ninety- 
four  dollars  was  in  cotton  and  tobacco,  leaving  for  all  the 
rest,  only  one  million,  eight  hundred  and  nine  thousand, 
one  hundred  and  twelve  dollars.  In  1848,  not  1847,  the 


FREE  TRADE  AND  PROTECTION.  247 

year  of  famine,  (as  it  is  called  by  the  protectionists,)  Great 
Britain  took  from  us  in  domestic  exports,  cotton,  rice,  to- 
bacco, breadstuffs,  provisions,  etc.,  of  the  value  of  sixty-four 
million,  two  hundred  and  twenty-two  thousand,  two  hun- 
dred and  sixty-eight  dollars,  exclusive  of  specie.  During 
this  same  year,  ending  June  30th,  1848,  our  exports  of 
breadstuffs  and  provisions  only,  amounted  to  the  sum  of 
thirty-seven  million,  four  hundred  and  seventy-two  thou- 
sand, seven  hundred  and  fifty-one  dollars,  being  more  than 
double  the  average  annual  export  under  the  tariff  of  1842. 
Our  tonnage  increased,  during  the  same  time,  from  two 
million,  eight  hundred  and  thirty-nine  thousand,  and  forty- 
six,  to  three  million,  one  hundred  and  fifty  thousand,  five  hun- 
dred and  two  tons.  The  total  revenue  was  thirty-one 
million,  seven  hundred  and  fifty-seven  thousand,  seventy 
dollars,  and  ninety-six  cents,  being  more,  by  nearly  eight 
millions,  than  the  annual  average  of  the  revenue  during 
the  tariff  of  1842. 

It  had  been  predicted  in  1846,  by  the  protectionists, 
that,  "  in  case  our  imports  should  amount  to  one  hundred 
and  forty  millions  of  dollars,  under  Mr.  Walker's  proposed 
tariff,  our  coin  would  have  to  be  exported  to  meet  the 
deficiency  ;  that,  if  they  should  fall  short  of  that  sum,  we 
should  have  an  empty  treasury,  and  that  our  exports 
would  not  increase  with  our  imports."  Time  has  shown 
the  fallacy  of  all  these  predictions,  our  imports  having 
been,  during  the  year  ending  30th  June,  1848,  one  hun- 
dred and  fifty-four  million,  nine  hundred  and  seventy- 
seven  thousand,  eight  hundred  and  seventy-six  dollars, 
and  our  exports  one  hundred  and  fifty-four  million,  thirty- 
two  thousand,  one  hundred  and  thirty-one  dollars.  The 
treasury,  in  the  mean  time,  instead  of  being  empty,  was 
always  well  supplied,  and  the  demands  upon  it  met  with 
the  greatest  promptitude ;  the  government  having,  in  June, 
negotiated  a  loan  of  sixteen  millions  of  dollars,  at  a  pre- 


248  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

mium  of  nearly  half  a  million.,  at  the  moment  of  the  termi- 
nation of  a  long  and  expensive  war,  leaving  a  national 
debt  of  sixty-five  millions  of  dollars.  Had  not  the  tariff 
of  1842  been  repealed,  there  is  good  reason  to  believe 
that  the  public  debt,  in  October.  1848,  would  have 
amounted  to  ninety-three  millions  of  dollars. 

If  any  occurrences  of  a  similar  character  can  be  found 
in  the  previous  history  of  our  country,  during  the  days  of 
protective  or  prohibitory  duties,  I  have  been  unable  to 
find  the  page  where  they  are  recorded.  Our  intelligent 
brethren  of  the  south  and  the  west  cannot  have  failed  to 
have  noticed  all  these  evidences  of  prosperity  and  national 
advancement  since  1846,  and  to  have  connected  them 
with  the  changes  then  made  in  our  commercial  policy. 
Any  attempt  to  restore  a  different  policy,  which  has  been 
tried  and  found  wanting,  cannot  and  will  not  succeed. 

The  iron  masters,  if  they  were  wise  and  far-sighted, 
would  not  desire  to  disturb  the  tariff  of  1846,  and  to  pro- 
duce another  inflation  of  the  business,  such  as  has  occurred 
since  1842.  One  of  their  own  number  has  recently  stated, 
in  a  letter  published  in  the  Philadelphia  and  Washington 
papers,  "  that  the  profits  are  now  fully  equal  to  those  of 
any  other  kind  of  business ;"  and  he  computes  the  cost  of 
manufacturing  pig  iron  in  Pennsylvania,  with  anthracite 
coal,  at  from  twelve  to  fifteen  dollars  a  ton  ;  whereas  the 
cost  of  a  ton  of  the  same  imported  into  New  York  or 
Philadelphia,  he  estimates  at  twenty-one  dollars  and  ninety 
cents.  "  The  business  is  now,"  he  says, "  overdone,  but  the 
demand  is  gradually  growing  upon  the  supply,  and  if  the 
tariff  is  let  alone,,  the  business  will,  in  another  year,  be 
healthful  and  prosperous."  This  prediction  may  or 
may  not  be  fulfilled  in  the  time  mentioned;  but  that' 
the  iron  business,  "if  left  alone,"  will  presently  become 
profitable  and  prosperous  again,  cannot  be  doubted  by  any 
one,  who  has  watched  its  course  either  in  Great  Britain  or 


FREE  TRADE  AND  PROTECTION.  249 

this  country ;  and  no  person  will  deny  that  immense  for- 
tunes were  made  by  the  iron  masters  many  years  since, 
when  the  duty  was  seven  and  a  half  to  fifteen  per  cent., 
and  long  before  the  process  of  manufacturing  by  anthra- 
cite coal  had  been  introduced.  That  dates  only  from  1840. 
The  annual  production  of  iron  in  England  and  Wales  is 
estimated  in  your  report  at  one  million,  two  hundred 
thousand  tons.  You  have  not  given  the  authority  upon 
which  this  statement  is  made  •  but,  if  it  be  correct,  those 
countries  must  have  sadly  retrograded  in  the  production 
of  the  metal,  for,  when  Sir  John  Guest  was  called,  in  1840, 
before  a  committee  of  the  House  of  Commons,  to  give  his 
evidence  upon  the  article,  he  stated  "  that  the  produce  of 
iron  in  those  countries  had  been  raised  from  one  hundred 
and  twenty-five  thousand  tons,  in  1796,  to  more  than  one 
million,  five  hundred  thousand  tons,  in  1839."  This  extract 
I  have  made  from  a  copy  of  the  parliamentary  papers,  and 
I  am  the  more  particular  in  calling  your  attention  to 
it,  as  otherwise  the  estimate  I  have  given  of  the  American 
production,  eight  hundred  thousand  to  one  million  of  tons, 
might  appear  extravagant.  Sir  John  Guest,  at  the  time 
he  gave  this  evidence,  was  proprietor  of  one  of  four  iron 
establishments  in  South  Wales,  which  produced  above  one 
quarter  of  the  whole  amount  of  iron  manufactured  in  the 
empire.  If  it  were  necessary  to  assign  any  further  reasons 
why  the  duty  on  iron  should  not  be  increased,  it  might  be 
added  that  the  money  derived  from  it  is  wanted  to  meet 
the  current  expenses  of  government,  and  pay  the  interest 
upon  the  national  debt.  After  the  passage  of  the  tariff 
of  1842,  raising  the  duty,  the  revenue  derived  from  iron 
and  manufactures  of  iron,  from  October,  1842,  to  30th 
June,  1843,  amounted  to  only  nine  hundred,  two  thousand, 
and  fifty-four  dollars,  and  eighty-three  cents.  The  next 
year  it  reached  the  sum  of  two  million,  four  hundred  and 
seventy-seven  thousand,  three  hundred  and  forty-two  dol- 


250  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

lars,  and  thirty-five  cents,  but  under  the  reduced  tariff  of 
Mr.  Walker,  during  the  year  ending  the  30th  June,  1848, 
it  amounted  to  the  enhanced  sum  of  three  million,  seven 
hundred  and  thirty-six  thousand,  two  hundred  and  twenty- 
three  dollars,  and  twenty  cents;  and  during  the  year  ending 
the  30th  June,  1850,  it  will  probably  reach  the  sum  of 
five  millions  of  dollars.  The  fact  that  the  way  to  augment 
the  amount  of  revenue  derived  from  an  article  is  to  lower 
the  duty  to  a  revenue  standard,  and  not  to  increase  it,  so 
as  to  make  it  protective  or  prohibitory,  is  too  well  estab- 
lished now  to  require  further  argument ;  and  yet  in  your 
report,  surrounded  as  you  are  on  every  side  with  the  evi- 
dences of  the  truth  of  this  proposition,  you  have  recom- 
mended raising  the  duties  to  obtain  more  revenue.  Of 
all  the  positions  assumed  by  you,  this,  if  I  mistake  not, 
will  be  considered  the  most  extraordinary,  unsound,  and 
paradoxical.  One  would  have  supposed  that  the  state  of 
the  post  office  receipts,  since  the  rates  have  been  reduced, 
not  only  in  Great  Britain  but  in  the  United  States  also, 
as  exhibited  in  the  postmaster  general's  report,  might 
have  furnished  you  with  a  safe  and  useful  guide  in  pre- 
paring a  programme  for  a  tariff  of  duties  upon  imports. 

It  cannot  be  denied,  that  the  theory  of  monopoly  and 
protection,  under  whatever  aspect  the  subject  may  be 
viewed,  is  founded  upon  scarcity  as  its  principal  support. 
It  is  a  system  which  looks  upon  plenty  and  abundance, 
not  as  blessings  to  be  desired,  but  as  a  calamity  to  be 
deprecated  and  avoided.  It  is  akin  to  the  error  which 
induces  the  workmen  in  times  of  manufacturing  distress, 
to  band  together  and  break  the  machinery  in  the  factories 
and  workshops,  because  it  increases  the  quantity  of  manu- 
factures, and,  as  they  ignorantly  suppose,  lowers  the  wages 
of  labor.  The  protectionist  papers,  in  announcing  the 
arrival  of  several  packets  from  Liverpool  or  Havre,  at 
New  York,  with  woollens,  cottons,  linens,  and  silks,  for  the 


FREE  TRADE  AND  PROTECTION.  251 

supply  of  our  wants,  are  accustomed  to  speak  of  our  being 
"  inundated  with  goods/'  as  if  some  destructive  river  had 
broken  through  its  boundaries,  or  what  they  call,  at  New 
Orleans,  a  crevasse,  had  taken  place. 

The  American  Congress,  ever  since  1816,  with  one  or 
two  short  intervals,  have  been  passing  laws  to  sustain  this 
fallacy ;  for  high  tariffs  can  only  accomplish  their  work  by 
enhancing  the  price  of  commodities  in  one  mode  or 
another.  The  legislators,  th'e  manufacturers,  the  politi- 
cians, who  cater  for  the  taste  of  the  multitude,  and  traffic 
in  patriotism  by  professions  of  their  devotion  to  what  they 
call  "  the  American  system,"  all  sustain  the  sophism  that 
scarcity  is  to  be  desired.  They  seem  unconscious  that 
man  is  a  being  who  consumes,  as  well  as  produces,  and 
that  if,  as  a  seller,  his  interest  be  promoted  by  having  the 
article  he  deals  in,  dear  and  scarce,  yet,  as  a  buyer,  a 
cheap  market  and  abundance  are  what  he  most  desires. 
The  iron  masters  would  have  a  monopoly  of  iron ;  the 
owner  of  coal  mines  one  of  coal ;  and  the  manufacturer  of 
cottons,  woollens,  etc.,  would  have  foreign  importations 
prohibited,  to  give  him  "  the  supply  of  the  home  market." 
The  consumer,  on  the  other  hand,  desires  that  all  these 
articles  may  be  abundant,  and  that  he  may  supply  his 
wants  at  the  most  moderate  prices.  Surely,  then,  when 
the  government  interposes  its  authority,  and  passes  laws 
in  favor  of  one  class,  and  that  consisting  of  the  smaller 
number,  against  the  rights  and  interests  of  the  other 
classes,  which  compose  the  majority,  it  seems  to  me  to 
exercise  a  power  which  may  be  usurped  by  a  despot,  but 
should  never  be  conferred  by  the  suffrages  of  a  free  and 
intelligent  community  upon  their  rulers.  These  truths 
would  appear  to  be  simple  and  obvious  enough,  and  yet, 
how  little  have  they  been  heeded,  until  recently,  by  gov- 
ernments and  legislators!  Even  now  we  find  persons 
amongst  us  of  talents  and  education,  and  filling  an  ele- 


WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

vated  rank  in  society,  who  continue  to  speak  of  what  they 
sneeringly  call  "  free  trade/'  as  "  an  abstraction/'  "  a 
dream/'  "  a  chimera/'  which  it  is  impossible,  were  it  desir- 
able, to  reduce  to  practice,  whilst  daily  experience  teaches 
us  that  every  one  is,  in  fact,  a  free  trader,  so  far  as  his 
actions  can  prove  him  to  be  so ;  as  no  person  ever  know- 
ingly goes  to  a  dear  shop  to  purchase  what  he  wants,  but 
always  to  that  which  can  supply  him  with  the  best  article 
at  the  lowest  price.  All  commerce  is  conducted  on  this 
principle,  and  ever  must  be.  It  is  only  after  some  men 
have  become  interested  in  a  manufactory,  that  they  begin 
to  protest  against  using  foreign  productions,  and  "  employ- 
ing the  pauper  labor  of  Europe/'  and  talk  loud  about 
"  philanthropy  "  and  the  "  home  market,"  "  patriotism  " 
and  rich  dividends  of  eighteen  per  cent,  per  annum. 

These  remarks  upon  free  trade  and  protection,  are  not 
made  with  any  unfriendly  feelings  towards  the  iron 
masters  of  Pennsylvania,  or  the  manufacturers  of  New 
England.  I  am  perfectly  aware  how  unwelcome  such 
observations  will  be  to  the  great  majority  of  the  people  of 
Boston  and  its  vicinity,  where  a  most  bigoted  and  illiberal 
spirit  prevails  on  subjects  of  this  character,  so  that  to  him 
who  entertains  and  openly  professes  such  opinions,  may  be 
literally  applied  the  words  of  the  Latin  satirist, 

"  Non  uxor  salvum  te  vult,  non  filius  ;  omnes 
Vicini  odertint,  noti,  pueri  atque  puellse." 

They  may  appear  futile  and  unpalatable  to  you  also,  since 
you  have  become  a  member  of  General  Taylor's  cabinet ; 
but  the  principles  I  have  endeavored  to  establish,  I  believe 
to  be  founded  upon  truth  and  justice,  and  that,  sooner  or 
later,  they  will  be  adopted  by  those  who  deserve  the 
name  of  statesmen,  everywhere. 

The  last  steamer  only  from  Liverpool,  brought  the 
announcement  that  the  President  of  the  French  nation 


FREE  TRADE  AND  PROTECTION.          253 

was  about  to  have  "  his  tariff  of  duties  revised  with  refer- 
ence to  some  important  reductions;"  "that  the  Dutch, 
encouraged  by  the  example  of  the  English,  were  about  to 
take  measures  to  repeal  ,their  navigation  laws  ;  "  and  last, 
though  not  least,  that  "  the  representative  of  her  majesty, 
Queen  Victoria,  at  St.  Petersburg!},  had  opened  negotia- 
tions with  the  minister  of  the  Emperor  Nicholas,  with  the 
view  of  increasing  the  commercial  relations  between  the 
two  nations."  It  is  added  that  "  a  considerable  change  is 
contemplated  in  the  import  duties  on  articles  of  British 
manufacture,  and  in  cotton^  especially,  a  great  though 
gradual  ad  valorem  reduction  will  be  made."  By  this  you 
will  perceive  that  you  have  lost  already  your  most  faith- 
ful and  trustworthy  ally,  the  Emperor  of  all  the  Russias, 
in  sustaining  longer  the  restrictive  system  which  you  are 
endeavoring  to  restore.  But  I  am  not  sure  that  even  this 
will  have  any  effect  in  inducing  you  to  retrace  your  steps ; 
for  it  is  impossible  not  to  draw  the  inference,  both  from 
your  report  and  your  treasury  circulars  since,  that  you  do 
not  expect  to  continue  in  the  service  of  the  nation  long, 
when  you  probably  intend  to  return  to  Philadelphia,  and 
"  order  your  buggy  for  the  home  circuit  again." 

It  will  not  answer  longer  to  assert  that  free  trade  must 
fail  unless  adopted  by  the  nations  in  general.  The  con- 
trary of  this  has  been  proved  by  the  example  of  Great 
Britain,  which  has,  ever  since  1842,  been  fighting  the  hos- 
tile tariffs  of  other  countries  by  free  imports,  and  always 
gaming  the  victory.  For  six  years  before  1842,  the  year 
in  which  the  English  tariff  began  to  be  modified,  the 
annual  exports  of  the  United  Kingdom,  being  British  prod- 
uce and  manufactures,  amounted  to  forty-nine  million, 
two  hundred  and  ninety-six  thousand,  eight  hundred  and 
ninety-five  pounds,  whereas  the  annual  exports  during  the 
six  succeeding  years,  have  been  found  to  be  fifty-six  mil- 


254  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

lion,  seven  hundred  and  forty-two  thousand,  two  hundred 
and  ninety-seven  pounds. 

Such  results  as  these  offer  very  little  inducement  to 
return  to  monopoly  or  protection;  and,  although  the 
Duke  of  Richmond,  Earl  Stanhope,  Col.  Sibthorpe,  or  Mr. 
Disraeli,  in  their  present  agitation  of  the  subject  of  free 
trade  and  protection,  may  receive  the  support  of  needy 
noblemen  or  landlords,  whose  estates  are  heavily  mort- 
gaged, and  who  cannot  or  will  not  reduce  their  rents, 
they  will  receive  very  little  sympathy  from  the  people  at 
large.  These  gentlemen  complain  bitterly  of  the  present 
price  of  wheat,  forty  shillings  and  ninepence  sterling  a 
quarter,  and  impute  it  to  the  repeal  of  the  corn  laws. 
They  have  probably  forgotten  that  the  price,  in  1835,  was 
only  thirty-six  shillings,  when  the  corn  laws,  enacted 
expressly  to  raise  the  price  of  food  and  land,  were  in  full 
operation,  and  the  cry  of  agricultural  distress  was  heard 
from  one  end  of  England  to  the  other. 

I  have  already  alluded  to  the  specific  duties,  which  you 
so  much  approve ;  but,  upon  that  part  of  your  report,  in 
which  you  recommend  that  "  the  ad  valorem  duties  shall 
be  levied  on  the  market  value  in  the  principal  markets  of 
our  country  at  the  time  of  arrival,"  I  do  not  design  at 
present  to  say  a  single  word.  The  suggestion  is  so 
"  childish,"  (to  borrow  a  word  from  the  London  Times,  in 
their  review  of  your  report,)  and,  I  will  add,  so  utterly 
impracticable  too,  that  I  incur  no  risk  in  asserting  that 
no  committee  of  Congress  will  be  found  to  entertain  such 
a  proposition  for  a  moment. 

I  will  here  conclude  what  I  had  proposed  to  say  upon 
the  increase  of  duty,  which  you  have  recommended  on 
iron,  by  which  you  will  perceive,  I  trust,  that  if  I  would 
oppose  an  increase  of  duties  in  general,  it  is  because  I 
believe  such  an  augmentation  would  be  unjust  to  the 


FREE  TRADE  AND  PROTECTION.          255 

people  at  large,  and,  if  rightly  understood,  unfavorable 
to  the  best  interests  of  the  manufacturers  themselves. 
This  opinion,  if  I  am  not  deceived,  is  daily  acquiring 
advocates,  not  only  in  our  halls  of  legislation,  but  amongst 
the  people  themselves ;  and  therefore,  whenever  the  sub- 
ject of  repealing  the  tariff  of  1846  shall  come  before  Con- 
gress, I  shall  confidently  expect  to  see  the  project  rejected 
by  a  large  and  decisive  vote.  The  country,  it  seems  to 
me,  is  ready  for  the  question  now ;  nor  will  the  friends 
of  free  trade  and  of  a  liberal  commercial  system  shrink 
from  the  trial,  let  it  come  when  it  may. 

I  remain,  very  respectfully, 

Your  most  obedient  servant, 

S.  D.  BRADFORD. 
To  the  Hon.  WILLIAM  M.  MEREDITH, 

Secretary  of  the  Treasury,  Washington,  D.  C. 


WEST  ROXBURY,  (near  Boston,) 

February  6th,  1850. 

SIR, — In  several  former  communications,  I  have  taken 
occasion  to  address  you  upon  the  subject  of  iron ;  and  if  I 
have  felt  constrained  to  expresss  my  sentiments  freely 
upon  the  increase  of  duty,  which  you  have  thought  it 
expedient  to  recommend  upon  that  article,  the  addition, 
you  would  have  imposed  upon  coal  may  be  considered 
perhaps  even  more  surprising  and  objectionable. 

The  remarks  heretofore  made  upon  the  former,  as  an 
essential  necessary  of  life,  of  almost  universal  use,  and  vast 
consumption,  apply  perhaps  with  still  greater  force  to  the 
latter. 

The  history  of  the  coal  trade  is  of  too  recent  date,  and 
too  familiar  to  almost  every  one,  to  require  more  than  a 
passing  notice.  Anthracite  coal  was  first  used  in  this 


256  WORKS  OF  S.  D  BRADFORD. 

country  upon  tide-water  in  1820,  and  the  total  quantity 
dug  from  the  mines  and  sent  to  market  in  that  year 
amounted  to  only  three  hundred  and  sixty-five  tons.  For 
a  long  time,  the  difficulty  of  kindling  it  prevented  its 
coming  into  general  use.  After,  however,  this  obstacle 
had  been  overcome,  the  consumption  increased  at  a  rapid 
pace  for  several  years.  In  1821,  it  nearly  trebled,  having 
reached  one  thousand  and  seventy-three  tons.  In  1822, 
the  quantity  received  in  Philadelphia  from  the  various 
mines  in  Pennsylvania  amounted  to  two  thousand  two 
hundred  and  forty  tons ;  and  it  went  on  increasing  from 
year  to  year  at  a  rate  never  probably  conceived  of  in  any 
other  country,  until,  in  1846,  the  last  year  of  the  tariff  of 
1842,  (under  which  the  duty  on  imported  coal  was  one 
dollar  and  seventy-five  cents  a  ton,)  it  amounted  to  two 
million,  seventy-seven  thousand,  two  hundred  and  eighty 
tons. 

In  1847,  the  first  year  of  Mr.  Walker's  tariff,  which 
reduced  the  duty  from  one  dollar  and  seventy-five  cents 
a  ton,  to  thirty  per  cent,  ad  valorem,  (equal  to  an  average 
of  about  sixty  cents  a  ton  upon  the  several  costs  and 
qualities  imported,)  the  quantity  received  from  the  mines 
at  Philadelphia  reached  the  unprecedented  amount  of 
two  million,  six  hundred  and  fifteen  thousand,  six  hun- 
dred and  thirty  tons,  and  in  1848  it  was  still  larger.  So 
immense  had  the  trade  become,  that  in  1846  the  total 
number  of  clearances  from  the  port  of  Philadelphia  of 
vessels  or  boats  loaded  with  anthracite  coal,  amounted  to 
eight  thousand  nine  hundred  and  fifty-three,  carrying  one 
million,  sixty-five  thousand,  two  hundred  and  twenty- 
eight  tons ;  in  addition  to  the  quantity  shipped  in  boats 
from  the  Lehigh  mines.  The  article  has  come  into  exten- 
sive use  for  domestic  purposes,  for  producing  steam  in 
manufactories,  for  propelling  steamboats  and  railway 
locomotives,  and  since  1840  for  the  manufacture  of  iron. 


FREE  TRADE  AND  PROTECTION.  £57 

One  company  alone  in  Philadelphia,  the  Reading  Rail- 
road, has  already  expended  the  vast  sum  of  sixteen  mil- 
lions of  dollars,  in  conveying  part  of  the  above  mentioned 
quantity  from  the  mines  in  the  interior  of  Pennsylvania 
to  tide-water,  at  or  near  Philadelphia, 

Having  glanced  thus  at  the  origin  and  rapid  increase 
of  the  coal  trade  in  Pennsylvania,  I  proceed  to  inquire 
what  may  be  the  foreign  competition,  with  which  it  has 
to  contend,  of  which  such  severe  complaints  are  made  by 
the  protectionists.  On  reference  to  official  documents,  I 
find  the  rivalry  to  be  with  Great  Britain  and  Nova  Scotia, 
and  that  the  total  amount  of  coal  imported  amounted  in 

1842  to  141,526  tons. 

1843  "  41,163  " 
'  1844  "                       87,073  " 

1845  «  85,771  « 

1846  "  156,853  " 


511,860  " 

making  the  average  annual  importation,  for  the  term  of 
five  consecutive  years,  one  hundred  and  two  thousand, 
three  hundred  and  seventy-three  tons,  equal  to  less  than 
one-fifth  of  the  increase  of  Pennsylvania  coal  in  a  single 
year  from  1846  to  1847,  and  amounting  to  about  the 
quantity  brought  from  the  interior  to  Philadelphia  in  a 
single  month  by  the  Reading  Railway.  The  above  state- 
ments are  given  principally  upon  the  authority  of  the 
pamphlet  before  mentioned,  by  C.  G.  Childs,  editor.  The 
quantity  imported  during  the  year  ending  the  30th  June, 
1849,  is  understood  to  have  been  one  hundred  and  ninety- 
eight  thousand  two  hundred  and  thirteen  tons,  and  the 
present  year  will  probably  show  an  increase  upon  even 
this  amount. 

The  truth  is,  there  is  an  increase  since  1846,  in  the  im- 
portation of  almost  every  article,  which  conduces  to  the 
comfort  and  well-being  of  the  community,  as  well  as  an 


258  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

increase  in  the  exports  of  our  surplus  products ;  which  the 
advocates  of  free  trade  predicted  would  take  place  from 
the  beginning.  The  effects  produced  by  our  present  lib- 
eral tariff,  are  being  more  and  more  developed  daily,  and 
are  visible  in  the  unexampled  prosperity  of  the  country  in 
all  its  diversified  pursuits.  The  people  were  never  before 
so  abundantly  fed,  so  comfortably  clad,  nor  so  well  em- 
ployed, at  good  wages  too. 

Who  can  have  forgotten,  soon  after  the  passage  of  Mr. 
Clay's  impolitic  and  prohibitory  tariff  of  1828,  the  pros- 
trate condition  of  our  foreign  commerce,  the  numerous 
bankruptcies  amongst  the  manufacturers,  for  whose  special 
benefit  it  had  been  made,  and  the  general  derangement  of 
commercial  affairs  ?  Our  numerous  shipyards  were 
deserted,  and  the  operatives  without  employment.  Our 
exports  of  domestic  produce  from  1828  to  1832,  the  year 
of  the  compromise,  averaged  only  fifty-eight  million,  forty- 
nine  thousand,  two  hundred  and  eighty-one  dollars  per 
annum.  The  average,  from  1832  to  1837,  under  the 
reduced  duties  of  the  compromise  act,  was  ninety-one  mil- 
lion, two  thousand,  four  hundred  and  seven  dollars. 

What  a  change  do  we  witness  now !  A  short  time  since 
a  statement  was  made  of  the  number  of  vessels  wThich  had 
been  built  in  New  York,  and  launched,  or  were  then  upon 
the  stocks  in  1849,  and  they  consisted  of  eight  steamships, 
eighteen  steamboats,  twenty-five  ships,  three  barks,  four 
schooners,  six  ferryboats,  and  three  sloops,  say  sixty-seven 
vessels,  having  a  tonnage  of  sixty-three  thousand,  six  hun- 
dred and  seventy-five  tons.  In  Massachusetts,  and  espec- 
ially in  Maine  also,  the  shipbuilders,  it  is  believed,  were 
never  so  full  of  orders.  In  the  small  village  of  Medford, 
five  miles  from  Boston,  containing,  in  1840,  only  two  thou- 
sand, four  hundred  and  seventy-eight  inhabitants,  there 
were  built  and  launched  last  year,  twenty-one  vessels, 
most  of  them  large  ships,  of  admirable  workmanship  and 


FREE  TRADE  AND  PROTECTION.  259 

beauty  of  proportion,  having  a  tonnage  of  thirteen  thou- 
sand, two  hundred  and  fifty  tons.  In  the  district  of  Bath, 
in  Maine,  there  were  also  built  in  1849,  forty-four  vessels, 
and  the  tonnage  was  twenty-two  thousand,  two  hundred 
and  sixty-three  tons.  So  certain  is  it  that  a  nation  has 
only  to  establish  wise  and  liberal  regulations  amongst  its 
own  people  and  with  foreign  nations,  and  navigation  and 
commerce  are  sure  to  flourish  there.  The  greater  freedom 
they  have  the  better,  and  above  all,  let  the  custom  house 
regulations  be  simple,  uniform,  and  changed  as  seldom  as 
possible.  "  Le  commerce?  says  a  celebrated  French  author, 
"  est  comme  certaines  sources  ;  si  vous  voulez  detourner  leur  cours, 
vous  les  faites  tarir" 

In  watching  the  wonderful  progress  of  our  country 
since  1837,  every  candid  observer  must  have  perceived,  I 
think,  that  the  two  great  measures,  to  which  we  owe  not 
only  our  prosperity  but  our  stability  also,  are  the  tariff  of 
1846,  and  the  sub-treasury  act.  For  the  first  we  are 
indebted  to  the  clear  judgment  and  unwearied  persever- 
ance of  Mr.  Walker,  never  forgetting  the  patriotic  and 
intrepid  conduct  of  the  vice  president,  Mr.  Dallas,  in  giving 
the  casting  vote ;  and  for  the  latter  to  the  wisdom  and 
patriotism  of  Mr.  Van  Buren.  Let  our  gratitude  be  in 
proportion  to  the  value  of  the  benefits  conferred. 

But  let  us  inquire  in  what  respects  the  owners  of  coal 
mines  in  Newcastle,  England,  or  Nova  Scotia,  have  any 
particular  advantages  over  those  of  Pennsylvania,  that  the 
latter  should  be  deemed  entitled  to  any  special  protection 
by  government.  The  invoices  and  documents  before  me, 
are  not  of  a  character  to  authorize  any  such  addition  of 
duty  as  probably  will  be  asked  for,  nor  indeed  any  increase 
at  all.  The  cost  price  of  a  ton  of  Newcastle  coal,  landed 
at  Boston,  New  York,  or  Philadelphia,  is  about  seven  dol- 
lars and  thirty  cents,  and  of  Sydney,  four  dollars  to  four 
dollars  and  twenty-five  cents.  This  supposes  the  shipment 


260  WORKS  OF    S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

to  be  made  at  the  most  favorable  season  of  the  year,  and 
at  a  reasonable  rate  of  freight. 

The  cost  of  anthracite  "in  the  above  named  cities  is  about 
four  dollars  and  seventy-five  cents  to  five  dollars ;  four 
dollars  and  fifty  cents  to  four  dollars  and  seventy-five 
cents ;  and  two  dollars  and  seventy-five  cents  to  three  dol- 
lars and  thirty  cents ;  by  which  it  will  be  seen  that  the 
Newcastle  costs  the  consumers  nearly  double  the  price  of 
the  domestic  article,  and  that  the  price  of  Nova  Scotia 
coal  is  nearly  the  same  as  that  of  anthracite.  Why,  under 
these  circumstances,  should  more  duty  be  asked  for,  except 
to  give  the  coal-owners  in  Pennsylvania  a  monopoly,  and 
thus  enable  them  to  compel  the  consumers  to  pay  them 
an  enhanced  rate  ? 

Thus  far,  my  remarks  have  related  principally  to  anthra- 
cite coal  found  in  Pennsylvania ;  but  mines  of  bituminous 
have  been  discovered  in  Cumberland,  in  the  state  of  Mary- 
land, and  are  now  coming  into  use,  especially  on  board 
steamers  engaged  in  long  voyages,  where  the  best  article 
is  required,  and  it  is  said  to  be  superior  for  that  purpose  to 
any  found  even  in  South  Wales.  The  owners,  it  is  alleged, 
offer  now  to  deliver  it  at  Boston  or  New  York,  at  six  dol- 
lars and  twenty-five  cents  per  ton  •  and,  next  year,  when  a 
certain  canal  is  finished,  expect  to  deliver  it  at  five  dollars  a 
ton.  As  coal  wanted  for  similar  purposes  cannot  be  imported 
from  South  Wales,  for  less  than  six  dollars  to  six  dollars 
and  twenty-five  cents  the  ton,  why  should  the  duty  on 
foreign  coal  be  increased  ? 

The  statement,  which  has  sometimes  been  made,  that 
the  present  duty  is  only  about  forty-five  cents  a  ton,  would 
appear  to  be  incorrect.  The  custom  house  returns  show 
it  to  be  about  sixty  cents  on  the  whole  average  annual 
quantity  imported.  It  is  very  evident  that  the  coal  busi- 
ness in  Pennsylvania,  is  progressing  with  a  speed  never 
before  equalled,  and  it  would  no  doubt  be  greater  still  if 


FREE  TRADE  AND  PROTECTION.          261 

capital  could  be  had  to  multiply  the  means  of  transporta- 
tion from  the  mines  to  tide-water.  The  city  of  Boston  is 
said  to  have  lent  some  millions  of  dollars  to  promote  this 
object.  London,  New  York,  and  other  cities,  have  done 
their  part ;  but  yet  capital  is  said  to  be  wanted.  The  con- 
sumption of  coal  in  Great  Britain  was  estimated,  in  1840, 
at  fifteen  millions  of  tons ;  but  the  increase  since  must 
have  been  vast,  and  almost  beyond  belief. 

But  what  further  aggravates  the  unreasonableness  of 
demanding  a  high  protective  or  prohibitory  duty  upon 
foreign  coal,  is  that  it  is  a  different  article  from  the  anthra- 
cite, is  used  for  purposes  for  which  the  latter  would  not  be 
equally  fit,  and  that  to  prevent  its  importation  would  be, 
for  the  present,  at  any  rate,  to  deprive  the  country  of  the 
privilege  of  using  it.  Should  the  owners  of  the  Cumber- 
land mines  be  ever  able  to  supply  the  demand,  and  the 
quality  prove  as  good  as  is  anticipated,  as  the  price  is  so 
low,  the  coal  of  Great  Britain  or  Nova  Scotia  may  soon 
cease  to  be  wanted ;  but  let  us  not,  in  the  mean  time,  be 
left  to  the  tender  mercies  of  the  owners  of  the  mines  in 
Pennsylvania. 

Besides,  to  some  persons,  the  use  of  anthracite  coal  is 
exceedingly  unpleasant,  if  not  intolerable  ;  and  why  should 
they  be  deprived  of  the  bituminous,  or  have  to  purchase 
it  at  a  price  unnecessarily  increased  by  the  interference  of 
government,  not  for  the  sake  of  an  increased  revenue,  but 
to  enhance  the  profits  of  certain  owners  of  mines  in  Penn- 
sylvania ?  Such  a  proposal  should  receive  no  countenance 
in  the  national  legislature;  and  should  the  attempt  be 
made  by  interested  parties  to  induce  congress  to  increase 
the  duty  on  this  essential  article,  I  trust  it  will  be  rejected 
with  a  unanimity  and  promptitude,  which  will  prevent  any 
future  enterprise  of  the  same  kind. 

There  are ,  other  recommendations  in  your  report,  of 
which  it  would  be  easy  to  show  the  inexpediency  or  entire 


WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

impracticability,  as  must  be  obvious  to  every  experienced 
merchant.  It  does  not,  however,  seem  advisable  to  discuss 
their  merits  or  demerits  at  the  present  time,  when  there 
appears  no  reason  to  suppose  that  any  committee  can  be 
found  in  congress  to  recommend  any  material  changes  in 
a  tariff,  (much  less  its  repeal,)  which  has  so  approved  itself 
to  the  great  majority  of  the  people,  and  so  admirably 
answered  the  purposes  of  those  who  framed  it,  and  caused 
it  to  be  adopted.  In  conclusion,  then,  it  only  remains  for 
me  to  add  once  more  that 

I  remain,  very  respectfully. 

Your  most  obedient  servant, 

S.   D.   BRADFORD. 
To  the  Hon.  WILLIAM  M.  MEREDITH, 

Secretary  of  the  Treasury,  Washington,  D.  C. 


THE  LATE  CAPTAIN  BURSLEY. 

LOST  at  sea,  off  the  coast  of  Ireland,  on  the  13th  of  Jan- 
uary last,  Ira  Bursley,mastepof  the  New  York  packet  ship 
Hottinguer. 

The  account  of  the  wreck  of  the  Hottinguer,  and  the 
circumstances  under  which  the  life  of  her  heroic  com- 
mander was  sacrificed  to  his  zealous  desire  to  discharge  his 
duty,  have  been  already  given  in  the  public  journals,  and 
need  not  be  repeated  here ;  but  justice  and  gratitude  both 
demand  that  when  such  a  person  is  numbered  among  the 
dead,  the  event  should  be  suitably  noticed,  and  some  men- 
tion be  made  of  the  many  uncommon  and  estimable  qual- 
ities which  distinguished  him.  The  announcement  of  his 
loss  will  have  caused  many  a  heart  to  ache,  and  many  a 
tear  to  fall  amongst  a  very  numerous  circle  of  acquaint- 
ances and  friends,  beside  those  who  were  connected  with 
him  by  the  ties  of  relationship.  He  belonged  to  a  class  of 
men,  who,  for  nautical  skill,  intrepid  courage  in  the  hour 
of  danger,  and  gentlemanly  conduct  always,  have  never 
been  surpassed,  and  of  which  America  may  justly  be  proud. 
Their  superiority  has  been  universally  admitted,  and  has 
called  forth  the  admiration  and  encomiums  of  travellers 
from  every  clime. 

Since  the  introduction  of  steamers,  which  have  now  in 
a  great  measure  monopolized  the  passengers  who  once 
depended  upon  our  packet  ships,  less  is  heard  of  these 
American  shipmasters ;  but  all  who  used  to  cross  the  Atlan- 
tic before  the  steamers  had  commenced  their  career,  can 
never  forget  how  much  they  owe  to  them  during  a  ser- 


264  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

vice  of  more  than  twenty  years.  Those  can  best  appre- 
ciate these  advantages  and  privileges,  who  have  been  so 
unfortunate  as  to  have  had  occasion  to  make  voyages  under 
a  foreign  flag. 

Captain  Bursley  was  a  native  of  Barnstable,  Cape  Cod, 
a  section  of  our  state  to  which  we  are  indebted  not  only 
for  so  many  of  our  enterprising  and  excellent  shipmasters, 
but  also  for  some  of  our  most  distinguished  and  wealthiest 
merchants.  He  came  to  Boston  at  a  very  tender  age, 
absolutely  without  any  pecuniary  means,  but  he  brought 
with  him  what  is  incomparably  more  valuable,  a  character 
for  industry,  sobriety,  and  good  conduct,  and  immediately 
entered  upon  that  career,  for  which  probably  the  place  of 
his  nativity  upon  the  seashore  had  given  him  a  preference, 
under  the  care  and  guidance  of  one  of  our  most  skilful 
navigators,  as  well  as  most  successful  merchants,  Daniel 
C.  Bacon,  Esq. 

He  rose  rapidly  in  his  profession,  and  became  master  of 
a  vessel  at  an  unusually  early  age.  At  a  later  date,  he 
commanded,  for  several  years,  one  of  the  ships  which 
belonged  to  the  Liverpool  and  Boston  line  of  packets,  and 
never  can  the  writer  forget  his  departure  one  day  during 
that  period  from  the  end  of  the  Long  wharf  in  the  packet 
ship  Dover,  for  Liverpool.  The  wind  being  perfectly  fair, 
and  the  heavens  bright  and  clear  in  the  month  of  October, 
that  graceful  vessel  started  upon  her  voyage  with  an  unu- 
sual speed,  and  bounded  over  the  waves  like  some  beautiful 
bird  winging  its  way  over  the  waters.  Captain  Bursley 
had  taken  his  station  far  aft  in  the  vessel,  upon  the  part 
called  the  hurricane  house.  He  was  in  the  prime  of  life, 
full  of  health  and  vigor,  and  so  majestic  appeared  his 
noble  figure,  more  like  that  of  the  Apollo  of  the  Vatican 
than  of  any  one  else,  that  it  seemed  impossible  to  with- 
draw one's  eyes  from  him,  and  the  writer  stood  gazing 
and  watching  him  sailing  over  the  sea,  until  distance  con- 


CHARACTER  OF  CAPTAIN  BURSLEY.  265 

cealed  him  from  his  view.  It  was  not  Apollo,  however, 
as  he  is  sometimes  described,  the  mere  representation  of 
personal  beauty,  but  Apollo,  as  he  is  portrayed  in  the 
classics,  having  just  defeated  the  giant  Tityus,  or  slain  the 
serpent  Python:  The  writer  has  been  affected  in  a  sim- 
ilar manner  whilst  standing  before  some  of  the  chef 
d'oeuvres  of  Grecian  art  in  Rome  or  Florence  ;  but  never 
before  by  looking  upon  any  living  man. 

The  soul,  the  spirit  within,  was  worthy  of  the  form 
which  contained  it.  No  dangers  could  appal  him ;  no 
difficulty  cause  him  to  hesitate  or  falter.  He  had  a  sound 
judgment,  and  never  decided  rashly ;  but,  when  he  had 
marked  out  his  course,  no  obstacle  could  turn  him  aside. 
Had  he  belonged  to  the  navy,  and,  in  some  engagement 
with  the  foe,  received  a  mortal  wound,  his  last  words  would 
have  been  those  of  the  immortal  Lawrence,  "Don't  give 
up  the  ship  ! "  Had  he  belonged  to  the  army,  and  been 
left  behind,  as  Marshal  Ney  was  by  Napoleon,  in  the 
retreat  from  Moscow,  in  a  hostile  country,  surrounded  by 
a  victorious  army,  with  thousands  of  his  own  soldiers 
daily  falling  victims  to  famine  and  cold,  he  would  never 
have  abandoned  his  flag,  or  his  companions  in  arms,  but 
would  have  reached  Smolensk  with  that  part  of  his  divis- 
ion, which  had  survived  the  sufferings  of  that  dreadful 
march,  as  did  the  great  marshal ;  of  whom  history  relates 
that,  "when  at  two  leagues  distance,  Napoleon  heard  that 
Ney  was  coming,  he  leaped  for  joy,  shouted  aloud,  and 
exclaimed, '  I  have  saved  my  eagles,  then.  I  would  have- 
given  three  hundred  millions  of  my  treasure  to  save  the- 
life  of  such  a  man.' ' 

The  same  historian,  the  Count  Segur,  his  companion  in- 
arms, in  speaking  of  Marshal  Ney,  adds,  "  that  so  simple 
and  unpretending  was  he  in  his  disposition  and  mannersr 
that,  had  it  not  been  for  the  signs  of  astonishment  and 
admiration  which  he  could  not  help  observing  in  the  eyes- 

34 


266  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

the  gestures,  and  the  acclamations  of  his  companions  in 
glory,  he  would  have  remained  unconscious  of  his  having 
performed  a  sublime  action." 

No  words  could  better  describe  the  modest,  unaffected 
manners  of  him  whose  loss  is  so  deeply  deplored,  and  who 
has  been  so  suddenly  taken  away. 

Much  as  he  valued  his  home,  (and  few  men  had  more 
reason  to  love  their  homes,)  and  dear  to  him  as  were  the 
relations  of  wife  and  children,  in  the  hour  of  danger  he 
seemed  only  to  think  of  what  he  owed  to  his  character  as 
a  commander,  to  his  passengers  and  crew,  the  owners  of 
the  vessel  and  cargo,  and  the  underwriters.  Who  can 
have  forgotten  his  noble  conduct  during  the  great  gale  in 
Liverpool,  on  the  7th  January,  1839,  when  the  English 
coast,  for  miles  below  that  town,  was  strewed  with  wrecks, 
and  three  New  York  packets  were  stranded ;  the  wind 
raging  furiously,  his  noble  ship,  the  Cambridge,  swinging 
to  and  fro,  having  already  dragged  her  anchors,  and  being 
only  within  a  few  feet  of  the  granite  dock  walls,  (against 
which  it  was  expected  every  moment  she  would  strike 
and  go  to  pieces,)  he  hoisted  a  placard  upon  the  stern  of 
his  vessel,  on  which  were  inscribed,  in  large  characters, 
these  words : 

"  One  thousand  pounds  for  any  one  who  will  bring  me 
a  steamer  to  take  my  ship  into  the  stream." 

Three  brave  fellows  procured  a  rope,  dashed  into  a 
boat,  and  attempted  to  carry  it  on  board,  but  were  imme- 
diately overwhelmed  in  the  boiling  surge,  and  drowned. 
The  escape  was  a  narrow  one ;  but  the  ship  was  saved 
with  a  cargo  valued  at  three  hundred  thousand  dollars ; 
and  the  brave  captain  arrived  safe  at  New  York  to  carry 
out  the  first  news  of  the  gale,  and  of  the  loss  of  that  excel- 
lent man,  Captain  Smith,  (who  commanded  one  of  those 
packets  already  named,  and  who  lost  his  life  in  attempting 
to  save  her;)  and  to  receive  the  congratulations  of  his  friends 


CHARACTER  OF  CAPTAIN  BURSLEY.  267 

and  the  thanks  of  the  underwriters.  No  doubt  he  looked 
for  a  similar  result  upon  the  recent  emergency,  which  has 
proved  so  fatal  to  his  hopes. 

It  would  seem  that  his  judgment  and  skill  were  equal 
to  his  heroism  and  intrepidity ;  for  when  the  tide  arose 
the  vessel  floated  from  off  the  Blackwater  bank,  on 
which  she  first  struck,  and  would  perhaps  have  been 
saved,  had  not  she  struck  a  second  time  upon  the  Arklow 
bank,  upon  which  she  foundered.  It  must  be  remembered 
that  he  had  sent  his  passengers  and  half  of  his  crew  ashore 
the  day  before,  and  therefore  had  only  a  part  of  his  men 
on  board.  Probably  the  rudder  had  become  deranged, 
so  that  the  ship  would  not  steer.  The  writer  was  on 
board  his  ship,  the  Hottinguer,  during  a  tempest  by  night, 
when  "  the  waters  of  the  great  deep  seemed  to  be  break- 
ing up,"  the  waves  roaring  like  some  famished  wild  beast 
impatient  for  its  prey ;  the  thunder  rolling,  the  lightning 
flashing,  and  he  stood  gazing  upon  the  fearless  commander 
with  wonder  and  admiration,  as  he  passed  with  rapid  step 
from  one  part  of  the  vessel  to  another,  giving  a  word  of 
command  here,  and  another  of  encouragement  there, 
whilst  all  around  him  were  momently  expecting  ship- 
wreck, and  he  himself  was  as  calm  and  composed  as  upon 
some  quiet  Sabbath  morning  in  the  country  in  the  sea- 
son of  summer.  In  seasons  of  great  danger,  like  that 
now  described,  he  seemed  more  like  some  Grecian  or 
Roman  Deity,  Jupiter  or  Neptune,  than  a  man.  Many 
other  instances  might  be  mentioned  of  his  presence  of 
mind  and  fearless  conduct. 

In  all  his  dealings  with  others  he  was  systematic,  exact, 
prompt,  and  honorable ;  as  a  shipmaster  and  navigator,  he 
may  have  had  equals,  but,  it  is  believed,  no  superior. 
It  is  not  remembered  that  during  the  more  than  thirty 
years  he  was  a  master  he  ever  lost  a  ship,  or  met  with 


268  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

any  serious  disaster  previous  to  that  which  terminated 
his  life. 

To  admit  that  such  a  man  had  faults,  would  be  only  to 
say  that  he  was  human.  The  writer  would  be  amongst 
the  last  to  admit  the  validity  of  the  maxim  which  directs 
us  to  say  "  nihil  nisi  bonum  demortuis;"  but  it  may  be 
asserted  with  the  strictest  truth,  that  not  many  instances 
can  be  found  of  men,  who  had  fewer  failings  or  so  many 
amiable  traits  of  character;  and  it  was  these  qualities 
which  rendered  him  such  a  valued  and  agreeable  compan- 
ion whilst  living,  and  will  preserve  his  memory  fresh  and 
green  in  the  hearts  of  his  relatives  and  friends,  now  that 
he  is  no  more  with  them. 

It  is  not  denied  that  he  sometimes  gave  way  to  sudden 
bursts  of  passion,  and  this  might  have  been  expected ;  for 
there  is  a  beautiful  harmony,  consistency,  and  proportion 
in  the  works  of  nature,  and  men  endowed  with  rare 
talents  and  uncommon  physical  power,  have  often  pas- 
sions graduated  by  the  same  scale. 

But  whenever  he  yielded  to  feelings  of  this  nature, 
reason  almost  instantly  resumed  its  empire,  and  he  lost 
no  time  in  making  a  full  and  generous  reparation.  He 
has  been  known,  in  a  moment  of  excitement,  on  account 
of  some  omission  or  mistake  committed  by  one  of  his 
crew,  to  strike  him,  and,  immediately  after,  taking  from  his 
pocket  a  considerable  sum  of  money,  hand  it  to  him, 
make  an  apology,  and  desire  him  to  think  no  more  of  it. 
He  said  to  the  writer  one  day,  "  I  know  I  sometimes  give 
way  to  my  temper,  but  I  never  harbor  any  bad  feelings 
towards  any  one  a  moment  afterwards.  I  strive  very 
hard  to  correct  this  fault.  I  have  many  blessings,  and 
have  been  a  successful  man,  and  I  endeavor  to  be  a  good 
citizen,  a  good  neighbor,  and  to  contribute  my  share  to 
supply  the  wants  of  those  who  have  need  of  my  assistance." 


CHARACTER  OF  CAPTAIN  BURSLEY.  £69 

It  would  be  easy  to  mention  many  instances  in  confirma- 
tion of  the  sincerity  and  truth  of  this  declaration,  but 
here  let  this  imperfect  account  of  him  be  concluded. 

He  has  gone  from  us,  no  more  to  be  seen  by  mortal 
eyes.  His  pleasant  and  encouraging  voice  will  no  more 
be  heard.  His  requiem  will  be  chanted  only  by  the 
surges  of  the  broad  Atlantic.  His  body,  if  not  recovered, 
is  under  or  upon  the  sea,  his  favorite  element ;  but  his 
soul  has  gone  to  God,  who  gave  it. 

s.  D.  B. 


SPEECH  AT  DEDHAM. 

WEST  ROXBURY,  (near  Boston,) 

October  1st,  1850. 

DEAR  SIR, — IN  the  report  of  the  fair  and  cattle-show  at 
Dedham,  on  the  25th  ultimo,  which  was  published  in  your 
paper  on  the  27th  of  September,  it  is  stated  that  "  S.  D. 
Bradford,  Esq.,  of  Roxbury,  quietly  worked  in  some  free 
trade  philosophy  as  an  antidote  to  some  strong  tariff  sug- 
gestions, which  had  fallen  from  some  of  the  speakers  who 
had  preceded  him." 

From  this  some  persons,  1  regret  to  say,  have  drawn  an 
inference  that  I  made  an  unjustifiable  use  of  an  occasion 
devoted  exclusively  to  the  subject  of  agriculture,  to  intro- 
duce certain  opinions  of  my  own,  upon  free  trade,  which 
are  supposed  not  to  accord  with  the  general  sentiments 
of  the  people  of  Norfolk  county.  I  should  have  considered 
it  most  impolitic  and  improper,  upon  such  an  occasion,  to 
have  entered  upon  the  discussion  of  politics,  free  trade, 
protection,  or  any  other  subject  upon  which  the  public  are 
much  divided ;  and  that  I  avoided  falling  into  that  error 
will,  I  am  sure,  be  evident  to  any  one  who  takes  sufficient 
interest  in  the  subject  to  read  the  speech  I  delivered,  of 
which  I  now  send  you  a  corrected  copy,  having,  however, 
added  a  few  paragraphs  which  were  omitted  in  the  deliv- 
ery, for  want  of  time.  Should  you  find  room  for  it  in  the 
columns  of  the  Post,  it  will  confer  a  favor  on, 

Dear  sir,  your  friend,  and 

Most  obedient  servant, 

S.  D.  BRADFORD. 
CHARLES  G.  GREEN,  Esq., 

Editor  Boston  Post. 


IMPORTANCE  OF  AGRICULTURE.  271 


REMARKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD, 

AT    THE  CATTLE-SHOW,   AND    FAIR    OF     THE    NORFOLK    AGRICULTURAL     SOCIETY, 
AT   DEDHAM,   SEPTEMBER   25TH,     1850. 

BEING  called  upon  by  the  president,  the  Hon.  Marshall 
P.  Wilder,  Mr.  Bradford  rose  and  said : 

MR.  PRESIDENT,  LADIES,  AND  GENTLEMEN, — In  rising  to 
answer  the  call  which  has  been  made  upon  me  by  our 
worthy  president,  and  to  return  thanks  for  the  honor  con- 
ferred, I  have  not  the  vanity  to  suppose  that  I  shall  be 
able  to  offer  any  suggestions  which  may  have  the  charm 
of  novelty,  or  prove  of  beneficial  consequence  to  the  inter- 
ests of  this  society.  I  see  around  me  a  large  number  of 
farmers  belonging  not  only  to  this,  but  to  other  counties 
in  the  state,  and  some  also  from  other  states  of  our  Union, 
distinguished  not  only  for  a  knowledge  of  the  theory,  but 
the  practice  also  of  agriculture ;  and  should  I  attempt  to 
lay  down  any  new  rules,  or  prescribe  any  new  methods 
for  the  management  of  their  farms,  I  feel  confident  I 
should  soon  discover  upon  their  countenances  a  certain 
smile,  such  as  I  have  sometimes  seen  upon  those  of  some 
experienced  tars  at  sea,  when  some  unfortunate  novice  has 
essayed  for  the  first  time  to  go  aloft.  As  I  do  not  wish  to 
have  my  feet  tied,  I  will  get  to  the  land  as  fast  as  possible. 
My  course  of  life,  as  all  who  know  me  are  aware,  has  been 
for  the  most  part  through  a  path  very  remote  from  that 
of  agriculture.  It  is  true  that  during  iny  wanderings  and 
travels  through  nearly  every  country  of  Europe,  for  a 
period  of  time  almost  equal  to  a  third  of  my  life,  my 
attention  has  often  been  called  to  that  subject.  It  could 
not  be  otherwise.  The  first  exclamation  a  stranger  makes 
in  passing  through  the  cultivated  fields  of  England,  of  parts 
of  Scotland,  Italy,  Holland,  or  Belgium,  is,  what  wonders 


WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

have  been  effected  by  agriculture  in  those  countries! 
What  a  garden  the  labor  and  skill  of  man  have  made  of 
soils  once  considered  worthless  or  indomitable !  Even  in 
Russia,  the  traveller  may  find  at  Tsarskoe-Selo,  near  St. 
Petersburg,  lawns,  which  for  smoothness  will  compare  with 
those  of  England ;  gardens  filled  with  the  choicest  fruits 
and  flowers,  and  a  collection  of  farm  animals  selected  from 
the  best  breeds  of  Europe.  No  person  can  have  visited,  I 
think,  the  model  farm  and  school  of  Fellenberg,  at  Hof- 
wyl,  near  Bern,  in  Switzerland,  in  sight  of  the  Alps,  push- 
ing their  summits  almost  to  heaven,  covered  with  eternal 
ice  and  snow,  without  being  filled  with  admiration  at  what 
agriculture  has  achieved,  not  only  there,  but  through  a 
great  part  of  the  whole  canton  of  Bern,  under  a  most  in- 
hospitable climate.  There  not  only 

"  Winter  lingers  in  the  lap  of  May," 

but  the  inhabitants  have  only  three  or  four  months,  in 
which  to  prepare  and  plant  their  lands,  and  to  reap  the 
harvests.  I  retain  a  pleasant  recollection  of  these  and 
other  places  •  but  the  estate  which  has  left  the  deepest 
and  most  lasting  impression  upon  my  mind  is  that  of  the 
late  Thomas  William  Coke,  of  Holkham,  county  of  Nor- 
folk, England,  with  whom  I  had  the  privilege  of  passing 
some  days  in  1835,  being  indebted,  for  his  acquaintance, 
to  a  letter  of  introduction  from  the  late  General  Jackson, 
at  that  time  President  of  the  United  States. 

As  the  life  of  that  great  and  remarkable  man  is  con- 
nected, not  only  with  the  history  of  agriculture,  but  with 
that  also  of  my  country,  and,  as  I  do  not  remember  to 
have  seen  any  book  containing  an  account  of  what  he  did 
for  America  in  its  colonial  state,  I  will,  with  your  per- 
mission, recount  some  particulars,  not  only  of  the  estate, 
but  also  of  the  life  of  this,  the  greatest  agriculturalist 
which  England  has  produced. 


IMPORTANCE  OF  AGRICULTURE.  273 

His  estate  consisted  of  forty  thousand  acres,  all  in  a  con- 
dition of  the  highest  and  most  perfect  cultivation.  He 
retained  for  his  own  use  about  seventeen  hundred  acres, 
and  leased  the  remainder,  on  a  term  of  twenty-one  years, 
to  his  tenants,  some  of  whom  had  acquired  fortunes  of 
forty  to  sixty  thousand  pounds  sterling,  kept  packs  of 
fox-hounds,  and  enjoyed  not  only  the  necessaries,  but  the 
luxuries  of  life.  He  had  four  hundred  head  of  cattle,  all 
of  the  North  Devon  breed,  which  he  preferred  to  all  oth- 
ers ;  four  thousand  sheep,  and  sixty  working  horses.  At 
the  time  I  speak  of,  he  had  four  hundred  acres  devoted 
to  the  production  of  turnips,  and  seventy-five  to  that  of 
mangel-wurtzel.  The  game  killed  annually  upon  the 
estate,  consisting  of  pheasants,  partridges,  woodcocks, 
snipes,  hares,  and  rabbits,  amounted  to  forty  thousand  in 
number.  He  had  a  chaplain  who,  in  addition  to  his  usual 
official  duties,  kept  an  exact  account  of  all  the  game 
killed  upon  the  estate  during  the  sporting  season. 
The  damage  done  annually  to  the  crops  by  the  rabbits 
was  estimated  at  five  thousand  pounds  sterling.  The 
usual  course  of  his  crops  was,  first  turnips,  next  bar- 
ley, thirdly  clover,  and  fourthly  wheat ;  and  the  produc- 
tion of  the  latter  was  generally  equal  to  sixty  bushels  to 
the  acre;  although  when  he  first  took  possession  of  the 
estate,  rye  was  almost  the  only  crop  attempted,  and  his 
neighbors  told  him  the  land  was  too  poor  to  grow 
wheat.  The  usual  rent  he  obtained  was  at  the  rate  or 
twenty-five  shillings  sterling,  equal  to  about  six  dollars  or 
our  money,  per  acre.  He  had  a  magnificent  park,  of  ten- 
miles  in  circumference,  containing  three  thousand  five 
hundred  acres;  the  choicest  of  the  trees  having  been 
planted  by  his  own  hand.  His  income  was  estimated  at 
sixty  to  seventy  thousand  pounds  sterling  per  annum. 

At  the  date  of  my  visit,  he  was  in  his  eighty-second 

35 


274  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

year.  By  his  first  wife,  whom  he  married  in  1775,  he  had 
three  daughters,  but  no  son.  He  married  secondly,  in 
1822,  Lady  Anne  Amelia  Keppel,  daughter  of  his  partic- 
ular friend,  the  late  Earl  of  Albemarle,  the  bride  being  in 
her  nineteenth,  and  the  bridegroom  in  his  sixty-ninth 
year ;  a  difference  of  just  half  a  century.  By  her,  he 
had  five  sons  and  a  daughter.  The  youngest  child  was 
only  a  few  days  old  at  the  date  of  my  visit.  His  oldest 
son  is  now  a  member  of  the  house  of  lords,  and  his  second 
a  member  of  the  house  of  commons.  Both  are  gentle- 
men of  great  worth  of  character,  and  do  honor  to  the 
family  from  which  they  descended.  Lady  Anne  was  dis- 
tinguished for  her  various  accomplishments, — for  beauty, 
but  above  all  for  domestic  virtues.  She,  as  well  as  Mr. 
Coke,  wras  almost  adored  by  the  tenants,  whom  she  always 
visited  in  times  of  sickness,  and  administered  to  their 
wants.  Their  children  were  educated  in  the  vicinity,  at 
schools  under  her  particular  care  and  inspection. 

Mr.  Coke  was  over  fifty  years  a  member  of  parliament, 
took  a  deep  interest  in  the  contest  between  the  mother 
country  and  the  colonies,  and,  because  he  favored  the 
latter,  was  called  for  many  years  the  American  rebel.  It 
was  this  intrepid  and  independent  farmer  who  had  the 
courage,  first  of  all,  to  rise  in  parliament  and  offer  the 
celebrated  resolution,  that,  "  The  American  colonies,  now 
the  United  States  of  America,  are  and  ought  to  be  declared 
free  and  independent."  He  did  this  in  concert  with 
another  friend  of  America,  Charles  James  Fox,  who  prom- 
ised to  second  the  motion,  and  to  advocate  it  by  a  speech. 
It  was^  adopted  by  only  one  vote.  Those  who  are  famil- 
iar with  English  history  at  that  period,  may  easily  imagine 
what  a  sensation  the  passage  of  such  a  resolution  must 
have  produced.  It  required  some  intrepidity  in  those 
days  to  be  a  patriot  and  politician,  and  oppose  the  king 


IMPORTANCE  OF  AGRICULTURE.  £75 

and  his  ministers.  An  active  opponent  of  the  govern- 
ment was  in  danger  of  being  sent  to  the  tower  and  tried 
for  treason,  a  crime  very  imperfectly  defined  at  that  epoch. 

The  king,  George  III.,  had  said  that  he  would  insult 
publicly,  any  member  of  parliament,  who  should  dare 
to  bring  to  the  throne  an  address  containing  the  reso- 
lution I  have  named.  Mr.  Coke,  on  hearing  this,  pre- 
sented it  to  his  majesty  clad  in  the  suit  of  clothes  he 
was  accustomed  to  wear  during  a  fox-chase,  instead  of 
those  in  which  he  usually  appeared  in  parliament,  but  the 
king  took  good  care  not  to  insult  him,  and  received  him 
with  all  those  marks  of  respect  due  to  his  character  and 
rank. 

It  was  this  same  independent  farmer,  also,  who  first 
ventured,  in  1782,  to  offer  another  celebrated  resolution 
in  the  house  of  commons,  viz.,  "  That  this  house  is  thor- 
oughly corrupt,  and  ought  to  be  reformed."  It  was  made 
at  periods  afterwards,  for  half  a  century,  ineffectually, 
however;  for  the  reform  bill  was  finally  passed  in  1832, 
just  fifty  years,  by  the  records  of  the  house,  from  the  day 
on  which  Mr.  Coke  first  made  the  motion  I  have  recited  ! 
Many  here  present  may  probably  remember  the  commo- 
tion it  produced  in  England,  and  that  a  hundred  thousand 
men  were  said  to  be  in  readiness,  at  or  near  Birmingham, 
to  have  marched  upon  London,  if  the  house  of  lords  had 
rejected  it. 

Mr.  Coke,  having  now  carried  his  favorite  measure  for 
reforming  parliament,  retired  from  public  life,  and  seldom 
took  an  active  part  in  politics  afterwards.  He  had  refused 
a  title  from  seven  prime  ministers  of  England,  including 
the  celebrated  Lord  North,  and  declared  to  me,  in  1835, 
his  determination  never  to  be  ennobled.  In  1836,  how- 
ever, he  received  a  visit  from  the  Princess  Victoria,  now 
Queen  of  England  ;  and  the  king,  William  IV.,  being 
unwell  at  the  time,  some  one  remarked  at  the  table  one 


276  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

day,  that  the  princess  would  probably  be  soon  called  to 
ascend  the  throne ;  upon  which  the  princess  declared  that 
whenever  that  event  should  occur,  the  first  title  she  should 
confer  would  be  upon  her  worthy  host ;  and  that,  coming 
from  a  lady,  he  could  not  and  must  not  refuse  it.  The 
queen  was  proclaimed  on  the  20th  of  June,  1837,  and,  on 
the  12th  of  August  following,  the  great  Norfolk  farmer 
was  ennobled  by  her  majesty,  under  the  name  and  title 
of  Earl  of  Leicester,  and  Viscount  Coke. 

Mr.  Coke  was  born  on  the  6th  of  May,  1753.  Six  vil- 
lages in  the  vicinity  annually  celebrated  his  birth-day,  by 
dinners  and  festive  games.  He  died  in  August,  1843,  at 
the  good  old  age  of  ninety.  The  American  Congress  was 
in  session  at  the  time,  and  I  could  have  wished  that  they 
had  adopted  measures  to  express  the  nation's  sense  of  his 
great  worth,  and  its  gratitude  for  what  he  did  for  our 
country.  I  regret,  however,  to  say  that  in  the  hurry  and 
turmoil  of  politics  this  sacred  duty  was  omitted ;  and  but 
few  Americans,  I  apprehend,  have  any  adequate  knowl- 
edge of  the  history  of  this  eminent  patriot  and  unrivalled 
farmer,  of  whom  I  have  attempted  to  give  some  particulars 
in  so  imperfect  a  manner. 

But  to  speak  of  persons  and  things  nearer  home.  The 
time  was,  when  the  name  of  a  farmer  (in  this  country) 
seemed  to  signify  some  one  who  was  obliged  to  labor 
daily  for  his  bread.  It  sometimes  also  seemed  to  imply 
a  want  of  information  or  refinement.  Farmers  were 
sometimes  called  clod-hoppers,  although  it  is  difficult 
to  see  how  any  of  us  would  be  able  to  hop  long  with- 
out them.  That  day  has  passed  away,  and  agriculture 
now  numbers  amongst  its  votaries  the  most  accomplished 
gentlemen,  the  profoundest  scholars,  and  the  most  distin- 
guished statesmen.  The  great  Washington  himself  was 
a  skilful  agriculturist,  and  found  time,  during  the  most 
critical  periods  of  the  revolutionary  war,  to  prepare  and 


IMPORTANCE  OF  AGRICULTURE.  277 

transmit  to  his  overseer  in  Virginia  weekly  directions  for 
the  management  of  his  farm.  The  distinguished  gentle- 
man who  recently  represented  this  state  in  the  senate  of 
the  United  States,  Mr.  Webster,  has  also  found  time, 
amidst  his  arduous  engagements,  for  the  pursuit  of  agri- 
culture ;  and  if  we  may  credit  only  a  part  of  the  accounts 
which  every  now  and  then  find  their  way  into  the  public 
journals  respecting  his  farm  at  Marshfield,  it  will  sustain 
a  comparison,  in  point  of  cultivation,  with  the  estates  of 
some  of  the  great  landed  proprietors  in  England.  He 
told  you  himself,  in  this  town  last  year,  that  "  he  had  tur- 
nips there  which  he  was  willing  to  compare  with  any 
farmer  in  Yorkshire."  He  urged,  you  may  remember, 
the  importance  of  cultivating  this  root,  and  added  that 
without  it  Great  Britain  would  be  unable  to  feed  her 
sixty  or  seventy  millions  of  sheep  and  her  fat  cattle,  or  to 
pay  the  interest  on  the  national  debt. 

I  have  mentioned  already  that  the  late  Mr.  Coke 
devoted  four  hundred  and  seventy-five  acres  to  the  cul- 
ture of  this  root  and  mangel-wurtzel,  which  seems  to  con- 
firm the  opinion  expressed  by  Mr.  Webster.  A  single 
acre  of  land  in  Ayrshire,  in  Scotland,  has  been  made  to 
produce  sixty  tons  of  turnips,  without  the  tops.  The 
land  alwaj^s  remembers  a  kindness  done  it,  and  if  well 
fed,  will  feed  us  in  return.  "It  is  never" — as  a  politician 
once  said  to  me,  (who  had  been  recently  deserted  by  his 
friends  and  lost  his  election,)  as  we  were  inspecting  a 
field  of  his  which  had  been  highly  manured  and  was 
covered  with  an  abundant  crop, — "the  land  is  never 
ungrateful." 

We  are  all  accustomed  to  hear  of  the  vast  exports  of 
Great  Britain — the  country  upon  which  the  sun  is  said 
never  to  set.  They  amounted,  during  her  former  restric- 
tive system,  to  fifty-five  millions  of  pounds  sterling,  equal 
to  two  hundred  and  seventy-five  millions  of  dollars.  Since 


278  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

the  repeal  of  the  corn  laws  and  the  changes  made  in  the 
English  tariff  by  that  great  and  good  man,  the  late  Sir 
Robert  Peel,  they  are  eight  millions  of  pounds  sterling 
more.  The  tears  are  scarcely  dry  which  England  has 
shed  over  the  grave  of  that  distinguished  statesman, 
patriot,  and  philanthropist.  All  classes  in  Great  Britain 
feel  that  the  country,  by  his  death,  has  sustained  an 
irreparable  loss. 

In  my  opinion,  America,  and  I  will  add,  the  whole 
world,  has  the  strongest  and  most  powerful  reasons  also 
to  lament  his  death.  I  have  always  considered  his  life 
as  the  best  guarantee  we  could  have  for  continued  peace 
and  amity  between  Great  Britain  and  the  United  States. 
One  city  after  another  in  his  native  land  is  taking  mea- 
sures to  honor  his  memory,  and  the  poor  and  laboring 
classes  are  about  to  erect  a  monument  to  him  by  subscrip- 
tions of  a  penny  each.  They  feel  that  they  have  lost 
their  best  friend.  On  this  monument  it  has  been  pro- 
posed to  inscribe  the  concluding  words  of  Sir  Robert's 
celebrated  speech,  delivered  in  1846,  as  he  was  about  to 
resign  the  seals  of  office  into  the  hands  of  the  queen. 
They  are  so  beautiful,  so  modest,  and  so  prophetic,  too, 
that,  with  your  leave,  I  will  recite  them  to  you.  "  Recol- 
lect," as  some  one  has  well  said,  "they  were  delivered  at 
the  moment  of  his  severest  trial,  when  he  was  about  to 
close  his  official  career;  after  speaking  of  the  ties  of 
party,  which  he  had  severed  forever ;  of  the  political 
friendships  he  had  converted  into  bitter  enmities ;  of  the 
floodgates  of  calumny  he  had  let  loose  upon  himself — 
after  recounting,  mournfully,  but  without  repining,  the 
sacrifices  he  had  made,  he  turned  for  sympathy  and  jus- 
tice to  the  mass  of  the  people,  and  closed  with  the  follow- 
ing words : " 

"It  may  be  that  I  shall  leave  a  name  sometimes 
remembered  with  expressions  of  good  will  in  the  abodes 


IMPORTANCE  OF  AGRICULTURE.  279 

of  those  whose  lot  it  is  to  labor,  and  earn  their  daily  bread 
by  the  sweat  of  their  brow,  when  they  shall  recruit  their 
exhausted  strength  with  abundant  and  untaxed  food,  the 
sweeter  because  it  is  no  longer  leavened  by  a  sense  of 
injustice." 

Well,  Mr.  President,  great  as  those  exports  of  England  are, 
amounting  last  year  to  sixty-three  millions  of  pounds  ster- 
ling, equal  to  about  three  hundred  and  fifteen  millions  of 
dollars  of  our  currency,  I  remember  that  in  a  speech  made 
a  few  years  since  by  a  distinguished  scholar,  who,  at  that 
time,  represented  this  country  at  the  court  of  St.  James,  he 
stated  that  the  grass  crop  of  Great  Britain  only,  had  been 
estimated  as  of  greater  value  than  the  whole  of  her  foreign 
exports ;  and  he  added  that  he  was  satisfied  with  the  evi- 
dence on  which  this  statement  had  been  made.  We  are 
too  much  accustomed,  I  fear,  to  over-estimate  the  amount 
of  our  foreign  imports,  and  to  undervalue  that  of  our 
home  production.  The  former  varies  from  one  hundred 
and  twenty-five  millions  of  dollars,  to  one  hundred  and  fifty 
millions  of  dollars  per  annum ;  whereas,  the  aggregate 
of  the  products  of  the  labor  and  capital  of  the  United 
States  amounted,  in  1847,  according  to  the  report  of  the 
patent  office,  to  one  billion,  seven  hundred  and  thirty- 
eight  million,  seven  hundred  and  seventy-nine  thousand, 
nine  hundred  and  seventy-five  dollars. 

There  is  another  aspect,  Mr.  President,  in  which  agri- 
culture may  be  considered,  in  some  respects,  the  most 
important  of  all.  I  refer  to  its  conservative  influence  in 
sustaining  civil  governments.  Deprived  of  this  I  am  con- 
vinced that  no  government  could  long  subsist  in  any 
country.  Look  at  the  revolutions  which  have  taken  place 
in  France  since  1793,  and  have  crimsoned  the  fields  of 
that  fine  country  with  blood  !  Where  did  they  originate, 
and  where  were  they  all  concocted  ?  In  the  country, 
amongst  the  farmers,  or  in  the  cul-de-sacs — the  crowded 


280  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

courts,  and  the  loathsome  cellars  of  Paris?  This  has 
become  so  evident  now  that  I  will  venture  the  opinion 
that  no  government,  republic  or  monarchy,  can  be  estab- 
lished in  France,  which  shall  have  any  considerable  dura- 
tion until  the  seat  of  the  government  is  removed  from  its 
present  position.  The  prophetic  wisdom  of  the  founders 
of  our  republic  foresaw  this  difficulty,  as  may  be  ascer- 
tained by  a  perusal  of  the  debates  in  convention,  and  on 
that  account  they  resolved  to  erect  the  capitol  not  at 
Philadelphia  or  Baltimore,  but  at  Washington,  in  an 
agricultural  district. 

The  oldest  republic  in  the  world  is  that  of  San  Marino, 
near  the  Adriatic,  in  Italy,  surrounded  by  despotism  and 
oppression.  It  dates  from  the  fourth  century.  It  has 
maintained  its  liberty,  laws,  and  territory,  for  thirteen 
hundred  years.  It  was  respected  by  Napoleon  in  the 
height  of  his  power ;  and  he  received  a  deputation  from  it 
at  Milan  with  the  most  distinguished  honors.  It  is  said 
to  be  almost  without  criminals  or  poor-rates.  There  has 
not  been  an  execution  there  for  a  hundred  and  fifty  years. 
I  remember  having  visited  it  in  1837,  and  after  inspect- 
ing its  public  buildings,  to  have  called  at  the  house  of  the 
jailer  to  inquire  how  many  prisoners  there  were  under  his 
care.  The  door  was  opened  by  an  interesting  young 
woman,  who,  holding  the  keys  in  her  hand,  stated  that 
the  prison  was  at  present  without  an  occupant.  She 
added  that  the  doors  of  the  cells  were  all  open,  and  I 
could  inspect  them  for  my  own  satisfaction,  should  it  be 
my  wish  to  do  so.  This  republic  consists  wholly  of 
agriculturalists. 

I  need  not  tell  you  how  conducive  agriculture  is  to 
health  and  vigor  of  body,  and  peace  and  tranquillity  of 
mind.  It  is  also  most  favorable  to  the  growth  of  the 
domestic  virtues.  No  one,  I  think,  can  have  owned  a 
farm,  especially  if  it  happen  to  have  been  that  upon 


IMPORTANCE  OF  AGRICULTURE.  281 

which  he  was  born,  and  where  his  parents  have  always 
resided,  without  having  felt  that  there  was  one  spot  on 
earth  which  claimed  his  attachment,  and  which  he  could 
call  by  the  endearing  name  of  home.  Such  an  one  is 
always  prepared  to  exclaim,  with  the  Latin  poet : 

"  O  Meliboee,  Deus  nobis  haec  otia  fecit." 

He  can  truly  realize  not  only  the  poetry,  but  the  truth 
also,  of  those  beautiful  lines  of  the  great  English  poet : 

"  'Tis  sweet  to  hear  the  watch-dog's  honest  bark, 
Bay  deep-mouthed  welcome  as  we  draw  near  home ; 
"T  is  sweet  to  know  there  is  an  eye  will  mark 

Our  coming,  and  look  brighter  when  we  come ; 
'T  is  sweet  to  be  awakened  by  the  lark, 

Or  lull'd  by  falling  waters ;  sweet  the  hum 

Of  bees,  the  voice  of  girls,  the  song  of  birds, 

The  lisp  of  children,  and  their  earliest  words." 

Ladies  and  gentlemen,  I  will  not  detain  you  longer. 
I  thank  you  sincerely  for  the  great  attention  with  which 
you  have  listened  to  me.  I  congratulate  you  upon  the 
success  which  has  attended  this  society  thus  far,  and  I  see 
no  reason  to  doubt  that  its  future  career  will  realize  the 
most  sanguine  expectations  of  its  patrons  and  friends. 

I  give  you  in  conclusion — Prosperity  and  success  to 
the  Norfolk  Agricultural  Society. 


DECLENSION  OF   OFFICE. 


[WE  are  very  sorry  to  announce  that  Samuel  D.  Bradford,  Esq.,  declines  being  a 
candidate  for  congress  in  the  eighth  district.  His  letter  to  this  effect  will  be  found 
below.  It  was  sent  to  the  committee  appointed  to  inform  him  of  his  nomination 
on  the  day  of  its  date  ;  but  its  publication  has  been  delayed  until  now,  in  hopes 
that  he  might  be  induced  to  withdraw  it.  Notwithstanding,  however,  pressing 
solicitations  to  allow  his  name  to  be  presented  for  the  suffrages  of  his  fellow  citi- 
zens, he  feels  compelled  to  adhere  to  his  first  resolution.  Mr.  Bradford  is  so  admi- 
rably qualified  for  the  position  which  his  friends  desire  to  see  him  occupy,  by 
education,  talents,  experience,  integrity,  and  general  popularity,  that  it  is  truly  a 
misfortune  to  the  cause  of  liberal  principles  and  enlightened  legislation,  that  cir- 
cumstances compel  him  to  decline  the  prominent  attitude  a  large  portion  of  the 
freemen  of  his  district  are  anxious  he  should  fill. — Boston  Post.] 

WEST  ROXBURY,  (near  Boston,) 

October  16th,  1850. 

GENTLEMEN, — I  have  had  the  honor  to  receive  your  com- 
munication, dated  the  llth  instant,  informing  me  that  I 
have  been  nominated  by  the  convention  assembled  at 
Dedham  on  the  8th  o£  October,  as  a  candidate  to  repre- 
sent the  eighth  district  in  the  Congress  of  the  United 
States. 

My  grateful  acknowledgments  are  due  to  the  gentle- 
men of  the  convention,  for  this  unexpected  testimonial  of 
their  confidence  and  favor,  which  I  shall  never  cease 
duly  to  appreciate  and  value  most  highly ;  and  the  first 
impulse  of  my  heart  would  be  to  make  almost  any  per- 
sonal sacrifice  to  comply  with  their  wishes.  I  know  it  is 
sometimes  said  that  the  honor  of  having  a  place  in  the 
national  councils  is  not  now  what  it  once  was,  and  that  it 
has  ceased  to  be  the  object  of  a  worthy  ambition.  This 


DECLENSION  OF  OFFICE.  283 

opinion  has  no  doubt  some  advocates,  and,  if  it  be  founded 
in  truth,  it  furnishes  the  strongest  reason  why  every  true 
patriot  should  take  the  front  rank  in  our  popular  elec- 
tions, and  do  all  in  his  power  to  restore  the  former  high 
character  of  our  national  legislature.  Let  it  be  granted 
that  we  have  witnessed  of  late  less  moderation  of  lan- 
guage, or  dignity  and  propriety  of  manners,  than  prevailed 
there  formerly,  and  yet  it  ought,  I  think,  to  be  consid- 
ered a  distinction  which  any  citizen,  however  elevated, 
may  justly  prize,  to  have  a  seat  in  those  halls  of  legisla- 
tion which  have  been  dignified  by  the  presence  of  the 
most  eminent  patriots  and  statesmen,  who  have  illustrated 
and  adorned  the  annals  of  our  country.  When,  therefore, 
I  announce  to  you  my  intention  to  decline  the  nomina- 
tion so  kindly  offered,  it  is  not  because  I  do  not  value  the 
honor  you  would  confer  upon  me,  nor  because  I  do  not 
feel  grateful  for  the  preference  you  have  given  me ; 
especially  when  it  is  remembered  that  so  much  of  my  life 
has  been  passed  abroad  ;  that,  since  my  return,  I  have  had 
the  pleasure  of  making  the  acquaintance  of  but  a  very 
limited  number  of  the  electors ;  and  have  never,  upon  any 
occasion,  taken  a  part  in  a  political  meeting  of  any  kind. 
Do  not  infer  from  this,  that  I  have  been  indifferent  to 
the  success  or  progress  of  those  noble  principles  of  lib- 
erty which,  first  proclaimed  by  Hampden  and  Sidney  in 
England,  and  afterwards  by  Franklin,  Jefferson,  and  other 
illustrious  patriots  in  this  country,  constitute  the  political 
creed  of  the  great  Democratic  party.  What  American  but 
must  have  been  proud  of  the  triumphs  achieved  by  it 
since  1801  ? 

To  whom,  but  the  anti-federalists,  are  we  indebted  for 
the  acquisition  of  Louisiana  and  Florida ;  the  demolition 
of  that  political  monster,  the  United  States  Bank ;  the 
introduction  and  successful  working  of  the  sub-treasury 
system,  reforming  and  improving  our  currency ;  the  repeal 
of  the  unjust  and  unconstitutional  bankrupt  act ;  and  the 


284  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

passage  of  the  tariff  of  1846,  not  for  protection,  but  for 
revenue,  as  was  contemplated  by  the  constitution  of  the 
United  States?  What  party  in  any  country  can  justly 
claim  to  have  been  the  authors  of  so  many  great  and 
important  measures,  all  conducing  to  the  prosperity  and 
happiness  of  the  people  ?  Nor  have  the  people  been 
ungrateful ;  for,  with  the  exception  of  four  years  and  a 
month,  the  government  of  the  United  States  has  been  in 
the  hands  of  this  same  Democratic  party  from  1801  to 
1849,  and,  for  aught  I  know,  would  have  continued  there 
till  1949,  had  it  always  remained  united  as  formerly. 
Surely  its  principles  must  be  founded  in  truth  and  justice, 
to  have  taken  such  deep  root  in  the  American  heart,  and 
to  have  controlled  the  action  of  the  government  for  so 
many  years.  In  fact,  they  control  it  now,  for  the  position 
of  parties  in  this  country,  at  present,  is  unprecedented. 
The  government  is  nominally  in  the  hands  of  the  Whigs, 
and  yet,  after  a  struggle  of  seven  long  months,  the  late 
president,  with  all  his  personal  popularity,  (the  usual 
attendant  upon  military  success,)  and  his  whole  cabinet, 
were  not  able  to  carry  a  single  measure  of  their  own. 
Every  important  act  which  has  been  passed  since  the 
decease  of  Gen.  Taylor,  has  been  either  a  democratic 
measure,  or  the  administration  has  been  indebted  for  its 
passage  to  the  favor  and  cooperation  of  the  Democratic 
party. 

An  anomaly  of  this  kind  could  not  have  occurred  in 
England,  for,  there,  the  cabinet  would  have  been  compelled 
to  resign  their  places  of  emolument  and  power  into  other 
hands ;  but  the  complacency  of  our  constitution  permits 
to  the  holder  a  continuance  of  office,  after  the  people  have 
repudiated  his  measures.  It  would,  however,  be  surpris- 
ing if  the  electors  should  permit  this  state  of  things  to  be 
prolonged  for  a  single  day  after  the  time  prescribed  for  its 
termination  by  the  constitution  and  the  laws. 

Having  declined  to  be  a  candidate  for  the  suffrages   of 


DECLENSION  OF  OFFICE.  285 

my  fellow  citizens,  it  might  appear  presumptuous  on  my 
part,  to  volunteer  any  opinion  upon  the  great  and  delicate 
political  questions  which  have  recently  so  agitated  the 
public  mind.  I  cannot,  however,  refrain  from  the  expres- 
sion of  the  deep  regret  I  feel  for  the  unhappy  division, 
which  one  of  those  questions  has,  to  some  extent,  produced 
in  the  ranks  of  our  party.  It  seems  to  me  as  unnecessary 
as  it  is  unfortunate  and  impolitic.  In  England,  we  have 
frequently  witnessed  the  permission  of  what  are  called 
"  open  questions,"  even  amongst  the  members  of  the  same 
cabinet,  consisting  of  only  a  few  persons,  upon  whose 
united  decisions  the  fate  of  that  great  monarchy  depends. 
Even  in  the  house  of  commons,  members  of  the  same  cab- 
inet are  sometimes  found  voting  against  one  another,  and 
yet  the  action  of  the  government  is  unimpeded  and  with- 
out interruption.  Why,  then,  should  not  some  open  ques- 
tions be  permitted  amongst  those  who  advocate  our 
cause,  consisting  of  so  many  millions  of  persons,  without 
preventing  their  harmonious  action  upon  the  great  and 
leading  questions,  concerning  which  they  all  agree  ?  With- 
out union  and  harmony,  nothing  valuable  can  be  accom- 
plished. "  United  we  stand ;  divided  we  fall."  There  are 
good  men  and  bad  men  belonging  to  every  party ;  and 
whilst  all  classes  reprobate  the  political  agitator,  who  vio- 
lently denounces  such  as  differ  from  him  for  the  sake  of 
acquiring  an  unenviable  political  notoriety,  or  the  emolu- 
ments of  office,  ought  we  not  at  the  same  time  to  exer- 
cise a  Christian  charity  towards  those  who  honestly  enter- 
tain opinions  upon  some  collateral  subjects  different  from 
our  own?  It  is  this  union  of  action  only  which  will 
restore  to  our  ancient  county  of  Norfolk  the  high  position 
it  once  occupied,  and  which  was  the  subject  of  so  much 
pride  to  every  patriot  living  within  its  borders.  To  men- 
tion only  one  instance.  Its  former  representative  in  Con- 
gress, the  late  Ebenezer  Seaver,  of  Roxbury,  heedless  of 
the  floodgates  of  calumny  which  he  let  loose  upon  him- 


286  WORKS  OF  S.  D  BRADFORD. 

self,  had  the  independence  and  moral  courage,  in  1812, 
to  give  his  vote  in  favor  of  that  war  which  the  federalists 
opposed  with  so  much  violence,  but  which,  every  one  now 
sees,  was  demanded  by  every  sentiment  of  patriotism  and 
duty,  and  which  raised  our  country  to  such  a  high  posi- 
tion amongst  the  nations  of  the  earth. 

But  to  return  to  the  subject  of  your  communication. 
In  declining,  as  I  now  do,  the  nomination  so  kindly  and 
unanimously  offered  to  represent  in  congress  my  native 
county,  to  which  I  am  attached  by  so  many  and  such 
strong  ties,  it  is  quite  unnecessary  that  I  should  mention 
the  various  and  cogent  reasons  which  have  conduced  to 
this  decision.  I  have  always,  heretofore,  upon  every  suit- 
able occasion,  declared  my  preference  for  continuing  to 
occupy  the  place  I  now  hold,  that  of  a  private  citizen ;  and 
if  any  one  had  announced  to  me  his  intention  of  nominat- 
ing me  previous  to  the  meeting  at  Dedham,!  should  have 
declined  the  proposed  honor  in  advance.  You  have  done 
me  the  favor  to  speak,  in  your  communication,  of  "  my 
support  of  Jeffersonian  democratic  principles,"  and  I  can 
assure  you,  that  my  devotion  to  them  was  never  greater 
than  at  the  present  moment.  If  I  mistake  not  very  much 
the  signs  of  the  times,  they  are  destined  to  be  soon  in  the 
ascendant  again.  I  shall  continue  to  support  and  advo- 
cate them  so  long  as  I  believe  them  conducive  to  the  honor, 
the  integrity,  and  the  happiness  of  our  common  country. 

Returning  to  you  and  those  other  members  of  the  con- 
vention whom  you  represent,  my  sincere  thanks  for  this 
proof  of  esteem  and  confidence. 

I  remain,  very  respectfully, 

Your  fellow  citizen,  and 

Most  obedient  servant, 

S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

To  EDWARD  CASNEAU,  Esq.,  President. 
W.  G.  LEWIS,  Esq. 

JOHN  GREEN,  Esq.          ^      Secretaries. 
JOSEPH  BARNEY,  Esq. 


MEETING  AT  FANEUIL  HALL. 

• 

MR.  CHAIRMAN  AND  FELLOW  CITIZENS, — I  hold  in  my  hand 
a  note  from  the  committee  of  arrangements  of  this  meet- 
ing, which  I  received  yesterday,  inviting  me  "  to  meet 
them  punctually  at  four  o'clock  at  Faneuil  Hall,  and  to 
make  a  short  address."  I  have  interpreted  this  to  mean 
that  if  it  would  not  exceed  fifteen  minutes,  you  would  listen 
to  me,  and  I  will  endeavor  not  to  exceed  the  time  men- 
tioned. 

In  rising  to  address  you  upon  this  important  occasion,  I 
feel  oppressed  by  a  sense  of  the  responsibility  I  have 
assumed,  and  must  throw  myself  entirely  upon  your  can- 
dor and  kindness.  After  the  profound,  spirited,  and 
eloquent  addresses  to  which  you  have  listened,  from  the 
learned  and  talented  gentlemen  who  have  preceded  me, 
it  would  be  presumptuous  on  my  part  to  enter  upon  a 
constitutional  argument,  or  to  attempt  more  than  a  glance 
at  the  interesting  subjects  which  have  been  discussed.  I 
am  proud  to  say  that  I  belong  to  the  great  Democratic 
party,  but  I  have  not  come  here  to-day  as  a  Democrat  or 
a  Whig,  or  as  belonging  to  any  party  organization  what- 
ever, but  as  an  American  citizen,  to  take  part  and  act  in 
concert  with  good  and  true  men,  of  any  and  every  party, 
to  sustain  the  Union,  the  Constitution  and  the  Laws.  I 
rejoice  to  see  before  me  such  a  large  number  of  my  fellow 
citizens,  who,  having  left  their  usual  engagements  and 
pursuits,  have  come  forward  and  filled  this  vast  hall  to 


288  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

overflowing.  It  cannot  be  any  ordinary  occasion  which 
has  produced  such  a  gathering  as  this.  It  reminds  one 
of  days  gone  by,  when  our  country  being  engaged  in  a 
disastrous  war  with  Great  Britain,  and  the  ships  of  the 
enemy  almost  within  our  harbor,  the  people  were  accus- 
tomed to  come  up  here  to  take  counsel  together  for  the 
safety  and  welfare  of  the  republic.  The  country,  thank 
God,  is  not  attacked  by  any  foreign  foe.  We  are  at  peace 
with  all  the  world,  so  far  as  our  foreign  relations  are  con- 
cerned ;  but  unhappily  we  have  an  enemy  within  and  in 
our  very  midst,  that  has  destroyed  the  peace  and  happi- 
ness of  more  nations  than  foreign  war,  pestilence,  or 
famine ;  and  that  is  the  spirit  of  disunion  and  insubordi- 
nation to  the  laws. 

The  country  is  prosperous  beyond  all  former  precedent, 
labor  is  well  paid,  the  people  are  employed,  our  commerce 
is  upon  every  sea,  we  have  passed  the  Rocky  mountains, 
and  acquired  a  vast  empire  upon  the  shores  of  the  Pacific. 
All  Europe  is  looking  upon  our  progress  and  growth,  our 
institutions  and  laws,  with  admiration  and  envy ;  and  yet, 
strange  to  say,  there  are  persons  amongst  us,  and  I  regret 
to  add,  American  citizens  too,  who  seem  to  place  no  value 
upon  all  these  blessings,  and  who  are  doing  all  they  can 
to  destroy  our  glorious  Union,  to  which  we  are  indebted 
for  all  these  privileges. 

They  would  enter  the  temple  of  Liberty  raised  by  the 
hands  of  our  forefathers,  after  so  many  years  of  labor  and 
sacrifice,  throw  down  the  pillars  which  support  it,  and 
scatter  the  broken  fragments  to  the  winds. 

And  why,  permit  me  to  ask,  must  the  constitution,  the 
charter  of  our  liberties,  the  work  of  Washington,  Frank- 
lin, Adams,  Jefferson,  and  of  the  other  illustrious  states- 
men and  sages  who  formed  it,  be  destroyed  ?  The  answer 
is,  because  according  to  them  it  contains  an  article  opposed 
to  what  is  called,  in  the  cant  of  the  day,  "the  higher  law," 


DUTY  OF  OBEDIENCE  TO  THE  LAWS.  289 

which  forbids,  they  allege,  the  restoration,  to  his  master 
and  owner,  of  a  fugitive  slave.  We  have  been  living 
under  this  article  of  the  constitution,  and  under  the  law 
of  1793  made  to  enforce  it,  and  signed  by  Washington, 
fifty-seven  years,  and,  until  very  recently,  have  heard  of 
no  complaint  against  it ;  but  now,  all  at  once,  the  cry  is 
raised  by  some  persons,  that  it  is  unconstitutional  and 
must  be  resisted,  even  unto  blood,  and  to  the  dissolution 
of  the  Union.  Where,  let  me  inquire,  have  these  fanat- 
ics, with  such  tender  consciences,  been  living  during  all 
this  long  period?  Have  they,  like  Rip  Van  Winkle,  been 
asleep  in  the  Kaatskill  mountains,  not  twenty,  but  fifty- 
seven  years,  and  have  they  just  awoke  on  the  eve  of  the 
recent  elections?  I  have  remarked,  on  former  occasions, 
that  the  qualms  of  their  consciences  have  been  periodical, 
as  Kean,  the  actor,  once  said,  the  taste  for  Shakspeare 
was  in  Boston ;  and  that  they  were  always  most  distress- 
ing a  short  time  previous  to  the  second  Monday  in 
November. 

But  have  they  read  the  fugitive  slave  bill  of  the  last 
session,  and  compared  it  with  that  of  1793  ?  If  they  will 
do  so,  they  will  find  it  rather  a  recognition  of  an  old  law, 
with  the  addition  of  certain  needful  amendments,  than  a 
new  one.  It  was  not  passed  hastily,  as  some  have  asserted, 
but  was  discussed  in  the  senate  during  four  long  summer 
days  from  the  19th  to  the  23d  August,  section  by  section, 
and  received  the  sanction  of  some  of  the  greatest  and  best 
men  in  the  nation.  The  yeas  and  nays  were  many  times 
called  for,  and  the  latter  seldom  exceeded  eleven,  whilst 
the  former  were  double  or  treble  that  number.  The  oppo- 
sition to  it,  in  the  senate,  so  far  as  one  can  judge  by  a 
report  of  the  speeches,  (I  do  not  say  it  invidiously,)  was 
feeble  and  inefficient.  The  impression  left  upon  the  mind 
of  the  reader  is,  that  the  gentlemen  who  spoke  against  it 

37 


290  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

were  acting  under  a  restraint,  perhaps  imposed  by  the 
legislatures  of  the  states  to  which  they  belonged. 

"  But  no  individual  in  the  senate,"  to  use  the  words  of 
Mr.  Clay,  "  was  hardy  enough  to  maintain  that  a  fugitive 
slave  ought  not  to  be  returned  to  his  owner  and  lawful 
master." 

Should  any  one  be  of  opinion  that  parts  of  the  fugitive 
slave  bill  of  1850  are  more  stringent  than  that  of  1793,  he 
should  remember  its  enactment  would  not  have  been 
called  for,  had  the  old  law  been  enforced  >  in  accordance 
with  its  true  spirit,  and  as  Washington,  who  signed  it, 
intended  it  should  be.  Do  you,  can  you  believe,  for  a 
moment,  that  it  would  have  been  sustained  by  Mr.  Clay, 
General  Cass,  Mr.  Foote,  and  by  the  other  distinguished 
statesmen  in  the  senate  who  advocated  it,  had  they 
believed  it  unconstitutional  or  unjust  ?  Who  does  not 
know  that  the  law  of  1793  has  been  pronounced  consti- 
tutional by  Chief  Justice  Taney,  by  Mr.  Justice  Story, 
and  by  many  other  profound  jurists  who  might  be  named ; 
and,  as  respects  the  bill  of  1850,  Mr.  Webster,  who  long 
since  was  proclaimed  the  "  Defender  of  the  Constitution," 
and  has  now  acquired,  and  justly  too,  the  honorable  title 
of  "  Champion  of  the  Union,"  has  not  only  declared  it  to 
be  constitutional,  but  has  also  said  "  that  no  one,  whose 
opinion  was  worth  regarding,  has  pronounced  it  otherwise." 
The  same  opinion  has  been  given  by  the  distinguished  coun- 
sellor, Mr.  Curtis,  to  whom  we  have  all  had  the  pleasure  of 
listening  this  evening,  and  who,  every  citizen  of  Boston 
knows,  holds  the  very  first  place  in  his  profession  here.  He 
must  be  a  bold  man  who  would  venture  to  oppose  his  indi- 
vidual opinion  to  such  authority  as  this.  But,  then,  the 
objection  is  made  that,  if  the  fugitive  slave  bill  be  consti- 
tutional, it  is,  after  all,  opposed  to  what  is  called  the  "  higher 
law."  This  phrase,  "higher  law,"  perverted,  as  it  has 


DUTY  OF  OBEDIENCE  TO  THE  LAWS. 

been  by  fanatics,  is  fast  becoming  a  by-word.  Its  real 
meaning  is  nullification,  repudiation,  or  abolitionism ; 
and  we  all  know  what  these  words  mean.  But  may 
not  a  law  be  too  high  ? 

I  remember  to  have  seen  in  a  conspicuous  place  in  Flor- 
ence, in  Italy,  an  elevated  column  surmounted  by  a  figure 
of  Justice  with  the  scales ;  and  I  also  remember,  that  a 
citizen  of  Florence  passing  by,  and  seeing  a  foreigner 
gazing  at  it,  is  said  to  have  remarked  to  him,  that  "  Justice 
was  so  high  in  Florence,  that  no  one  could  reach  it."  The 
same  charge,  I  strongly  suspect,  may  be  made  against  "  the 
higher  law  "  of  the  nullifiers  and  abolitionists.  It  is  above 
justice,  for  it  refuses  to  return  the  property  of  our  breth- 
ren of  the  south,  when  found  within  our  precincts.  Well ! 
what  then,  fellow-citizens,  is  to  be  done  in  this  crisis  of  our 
public  affairs  ?  Does  any  one  believe  that  the  south  will 
continue  to  remain  in  the  Union,  unless  the  fugitive  bill 
be  carried  into  effect  according  to  its  true  spirit  ?  Can  we 
expect  it ;  or  should  we  respect  our  brethren  in  the  south 
were  they  to  remain  indifferent  spectators  of  the  violation 
of  the  law  ?  It  must,  then,  be  carried  into  effect ;  peace- 
ably if  we  can,  forcibly  if  we  must ;  or  the  Union  will  be 
dissolved,  and  the  nation  will  be  plunged  into  all  the  hor- 
rors of  anarchy,  and  probably  of  civil  war.  Can  it  be  that 
we  have  those  amongst  us,  and  American  citizens  too,  who 
would  raise  their  parricidal  hands  against  the  ^1  essed  Union, 
the  work  of  our  forefathers,  and  the  foundation  of  that 
noble  structure  erected  upon  it,  the  United  States  of 
America  ?  It  is  difficult  to  realize  it,  or,  at  any  rate,  that 
they  can  be  found  in  Massachusetts,  the  state  which  struck 
the  first  blow  for  liberty  and  independence  in  1775.  But 
if  it  be  otherwise,  and  the  spirit  of  disunion  and  fanati- 
cism cannot  be  extinguished  in  any  other  way,  we  all  re- 
member what  was  done  in  1833,  by  that  hero,  patriot,  and 
statesman,  President  Jackson,  during  a  crisis  in  some 


WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

respects  resembling  the  present,  and  how  nobly  the  country 
supported  him,  both  Whigs  and  Democrats.  The  procla- 
mation he  issued  will  never  be  forgotten  by  Americans, 
and  will  ever  hold  a  high,  if  not  the  highest,  place  in  the 
archives  of  the  nation.  But  he  was  prepared  and  deter- 
mined, too,  to  execute  the  law  by  the  other  means,  had 
that  appeal  proved  insufficient.  Let  the  memorable  words 
which  he  used  then,  "  The  Union ;  it  must  be  preserved,"  be 
our  watchword  now ;  and  let  us  frown  indignantly  upon 
every  one,  (whatever  may  be  the  party  name  under  which 
he  may  range  himself,)  who  would  lay  his  sacrilegious 
hands  upon  the  ark  of  our  safety,  the  union  of  the  states. 
Let  us  no  longer  inquire  so  much  of  candidates  for  office, 
Are  you  Whigs  or  Democrats;  are  you  for  protection  or 
free  trade ;  for  a  large  expenditure  of  "the  public  money 
for  internal  improvements,  or  a  small  one  ;  but  rather  let 
us  put  these  questions  to  them :  Are  you  for  obeying  the 
laws  of  your  country,  or  for  breaking  them ;  are  you  in 
favor  of  jeopardizing  the  Union  by  a  further  agitation  of 
the  slavery  question ;  or  will  you  do  all  you  can  to  give 
peace  and  quiet  to  this  distracted  country,  of  which  it 
stands  so  much  in  need  ?  Let  us  support  them,  or  other- 
wise, according  to  the  answer  they  may  give. 

In  this  way  only,  may  we  still  preserve  our  glorious  and 
once-happy  Union,  and  hand  it  down  with  all  its  blessings 
to  succeeding  generations. 


LETTER  TO   THE   LEGISLATURE. 

0         : 

WEST  ROXBURY,  (near  Boston,) 

January  7th,  1851. 

GENTLEMEN, — I  am  not  one  of  your  number,  and  occupy 
only  the  place  of  a  private  citizen,  and  yet  I  will  offer  no 
apology  for  addressing  you  at  the  present  crisis.  It  is 
enough  that  I  am  one  of  the  great  Democratic  party, 
whose  principles  I  have  always  supported,  and  to  whose 
conduct  of  our  public  affairs,  during  the  various  trials 
through  which  it  has  heretofore  been  called  to  pass,  I 
have  looked  back  with  pride  and  satisfaction.  It  dates 
from  the  commencement  of  the  government ;  has  been 
the  object  of  unceasing  opposition  and  attack  from  1789 
to  the  present  day,  but  has  been  nearly  always  in  the 
ascendant,  and  has  deserved  and  received  the  cordial  sup- 
port of  the  people.  I  have  always  hoped  and  believed 
that  its  future  career  would  fulfil  all  the  bright  promises 
of  the  past.  Judge,  then,  of  my  surprise  and  dismay  on 
seeing,  in  a  morning  paper  to-day,  the  following  announce- 
ment: 

"  THE  NEGOTIATIONS. — The  Democrats  and  Free  Soilers  held 
meetings  in  the  State  House  last  evening,  and  mutually  ratified  the 
terms  agreed  upon  by  the  conferees,  viz  :  giving  to  the  Democrats, 
the  Governor,  Lieutenant  Governor,  State  Treasurer,  five  Council- 
lors, and  the  United  States  Senator  for  the  short  term :  giving  to 
the  Free  Soilers  the  Senator  for  the  long  term,  Secretary  of  the 
Commonwealth,  the  State  Auditor,  four  Councillors,  and  the 


£94  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

Sergent-at-Arms.  In  the  reports,  no  names  of  candidates  were 
mentioned  ;  but  Charles  Sumner  will  certainly  be  proposed  by  the 
Free  Soilers  as  the  candidate  for  the  long  term  in  the  Senate." 

In  other  words,  we  see  it  here  announced  that  "  the  Dem- 
ocratic party  is  to  be  abolitionized,  and  merged  into  that 
of  the  Free  Soilers/'  and  the  consideration  too  "  is  nomi- 
nated in  the  bond,"  viz.,  one  governor,  one  lieutenant 
governor,  one  state  treasurer,  five  councillors,  and  a  United 
States  senator  for  the  short  term! 

These  are  the  gilded  baubles  which  the  Free  Soilers  are 
holding  up  before  your  eyes  to  seduce  you  from  your  alle- 
giance, crying  out;  "  Come  buy,  come  buy."  They  have 
probably  ticketed  each  of  the  offices,  like  other  articles 
for  sale  in  the  shop  windows.  Surely  it  was  not  without 
reason  that  John  Randolph,  in  writing  to  a  friend,  in  1815, 
remarked  :  "  I  am  more  and  more  convinced  that,  with  a 
few  exceptions,  this  world  of  ours  is  a  vast  madhouse." 

It  is  not  even  protended,  by  any  one  entitled  to  any 
credit,  that  the  coalition  entered  into  in  the  autumn,  in 
certain  counties,  between  the  Democrats  and  Free  Soilers, 
was  to  have  any  relation  except  to  state  offices  and  state 
concerns ;  and  yet,  here  we  see  it  announced  that,  at  such 
a  crisis  as  this,  a  red-hot  Abolitionist  is  to  be  sent,  like  a 
fire-brand,  for  six  years,  into  the  senate  chamber  of  the 
United  States,  and  by  the  aid  of  Democratic  votes ! 

Gentlemen,  I  have  a  personal  acquaintance  with  but 
very  few  of  your  members,  but  it  seems  to  me  impossible 
to  realize  that  you  have  entered  into  such  a  monstrous 
agreement  as  this.  Had  I  supposed  such  an  agreement 
possible,  I  would  have  addressed  you  at  an  earlier  period- 
If  it  be  not  too  late,  I  conjure  you  to  stop  short  upon  the 
abyss  which  is  yawning  before  you — to  consider  your 
position,  standing,  as  you  do,  upon  the  very  brink  of 
political  annihilation,  and  to  retrace  your  steps.  It  will 
be  soon  too  late  ;  for,  when  the  act  is  once  consummated, 


CHARLES  SUMNER'S  ELECTION  AS  SENATOR.  £95 

you  may  call  yourselves  Democrats,  but  all  who  deserve 
the  name  will  repudiate  you  throughout  our  wide-extended 
Union ;  and  the  Free  Soilers  even  will  look  upon  you  with 
contempt  and  derision.  Already,  even  before  you  met  or 
counselled  together,  they  have  almost  exhausted  their 
voluminous  dictionary  of  vituperative  terms  in  character- 
izing you  as  "villains,"  "liars,"  "slave-catchers,"  and 
"  friends  to  the  Union,"  which  they  have  done  all  in  their 
power  to  destroy ;  and  when'  you  have  deserted  your  prin- 
ciples, and  voted  with  them  in  the  choice  of  a  senator, 
they  will  say,  with  justice,  that  you  have  deserved  the 
charges  made. 

Can  you,  for  the  sake  of  a  little  brief  authority,  and  a 
few  paltry  offices,  which  may  be  holden  by  you,  for  only 
a  year  at  farthest,  consent  to  place  yourselves  in  such 
a  position  as  this  ?  If  you  hesitate,  turn  to  the  records  of 
the  past,  so  full  of  political  tergiversation  and  corruption. 
Read  the  history  of  William  Pulteney,  the  patriotic  Whig, 
in  the  time  of  George  I.,  and  Sir  Robert  Walpole,  who,  for 
so  many  years,  opposed  the  corruptions  of  the  court  and 
ministry,  but  who,  in  an  evil  moment,  accepted  a  peerage, 
and,  from  that  day,  sank  into  insignificance  and  contempt. 
"  So  mortified  was  he,"  remarks  a  faithful  historian  of  that 
period,  "  that  he  is  said,  in  the  agony  of  his  shame  and  dis- 
gust, to  have  trampled  the  patent  of  his  peerage  under  his 
feet."  And,  be  assured,  if  you  give  your  votes  for  Charles 
Sumner,or  any  other  Free  Soiler,  Abolitionist,  or  Disunion- 
ist,  the  day  will  come  when  you  would  rejoice  to  obliterate 
the  memory  of  the  transaction,  and  when  you  will  be 
ready  to  trample  under  your  feet  also  the  record  of  such  a 
proceeding. 

How  can  you,  not  only  as  democrats,  but  as  philanthro- 
pists and  as  friends  of  the  slave,  do  any  act  to  increase 
the  power  and  influence  of  that  party,  by  whose  assumed 
regard  for  that  unfortunate  race  their  emancipation  has 


WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

been  put  back  a  century,  or  certainly  a  generation,  and 
can  probably  be  never  accomplished  so  long  as  their  vio- 
lence continues  ?  It  is  a  true  maxim,  and  has  been  exem- 
plified in  the  pretended  regard  for  the  slaves  in  this  coun- 
try, that  "  men  are  never  made  so  ridiculous  by  the  qual- 
ties  they  possess  as  by  those  they  affect  to  have."  We  all 
know  how  to  estimate  that  sensibility  for  the  wrongs  of 
the  African  race,  which  begins  generally  upon  the  hust- 
ings, becomes  more  and  more  noisy  in  the  halls  of  legisla- 
tion, but  ceases  all  at  once  on  the  acquisition  of  office. 
How  can  you  avoid  seeing  that,  if  you  give  your  vote  for 
an  Abolitionist,  as  a  United  States  senator,  you  abandon 
and  prove  false  to  all  the  pledges  you  have  given  in  vari- 
ous conventions  for  so  many  years,  and  do  all  you  can  for 
the  repeal  of  those  compromise  measures  to  which  the 
good  faith  of  the  nation  is  engaged,  and  without  which, 
probably,  the  Union  would  have  been  dissolved  ? 

You  have,  no  doubt,  seen  the  letter  recently  addressed, 
by  a  leading  member  of  the  Free  Soil  party,  Mr.  Palfrey, 
to  that  section  of  the  legislature,  and  I  commend  it  to 
your  careful  perusal.  It  seems  to  me  to  express  the  sen- 
timents of  an  honest  man,  who  appears  to  feel  that  those 
whom  he  has  addressed  are  in  great  danger,  and,  on  this 
account,  he  points  out  the  only  coiirse  they  can  pursue  to 
preserve  their  integrity  and  honor.  It  remains  to  be  seen 
how  far  they  will  follow  it.  "  Whatever  you  do,"  says  Mr. 
Palfrey,  "  do  not  vote  for  Mr.  Boutwell  for  governor,  who 
would  do  nothing  for  freedom.  In  my  opinion,  you  have 
as  good  a  chance  of  choosing  both  officers,  governor  and 
senator,  as  of  choosing  either  one  in  the  way  proposed, 
perhaps  a  much  better  chance." 

He  recommends,  you  perceive,  what  has  been  called 
sometimes  "  a  masterly  inactivity,"  and,  if  ever  such  a 
policy  was  wise  and  expedient,  it  is  upon  the  present 
occasion.  No  man  can  withhold  his  vote  too  long  when, 


CHARLES  SUMNER'S  ELECTION  AS  SENATOR.  297 

by  casting  it,  he  abandons  his  principles,  and  sacrifices  his 
honor. 

But  it  may  be  asked,  on  your  part,  what  is  to  be  done  ? 
Are  we  not  bound  to  organize  the  government,  and  to 
place  Mr.  Boutwell  in  the  chair  of  state  designed  for  him 
by  the  votes  of  thirty-six  thousand  freemen  ?  In  answer 
to  this  I  would  say,  Better  never  have  another  governor 
than  violate  your  principles,  and  bring  disgrace  upon  the 
party  to  which  you  profess  to  belong,  and  which  has 
guarded  the  fortunes  of  our  country  so  gloriously  for  so 
many  years ;  and  this,  be  assured,  must  be  the  feeling  of 
every  honest  man  of  every  party.  On  the  present,  as  on 
every  occasion,  a  straight  course  is  not  only  the  best  and 
most  politic,  but  the  only  one  to  follow.  If  this  be  not 
evident  to  every  one  now,  it  soon  will  be. 

I  have  not  intended,  gentlemen,  to  give  offence  to  any 
one  by  the  way  I  have  spoken  of  the  Abolitionists  or  Free 
Soilers,  whom  I  look  upon  as  the  same,  for  they  are  now 
everywhere  considered  as  identical.  I  have  spoken  freely, 
but  I  believe  also  justly,  of  them ;  or  perhaps  I  should 
add,  of  those  who  direct  their  movements;  for  I  own, 
gentlemen,  that  there  are  good  as  well  as  bad  men  of 
every  political  denomination.  When,  however,  I  see  one 
of  their  leaders,  Mr.  Giddings  (their  apostle,  as  he  is  some- 
times called  by  them,)  rise  in  his  place  in  congress,  as  he 
did  at  the  commencement  of  the  present  session,  and  com- 
pare our  present  distinguished  secretary  of  state,  Dan- 
iel Webster,  who  has  devoted  a  long  life  to  the  service  of 
his  country,  to  Dr.  Webster,  the  murderer,  I  blush  for  my 
country ;  and  I  am  prepared  to  say  and  to  maintain  that 
any  party  which  sustains  such  leaders,  and  advocates  such 
principles,  is  deserving  of  the  execration  of  every  Amer- 
ican citizen. 

Gentlemen,  1  have  written  in  great  haste,  and  may  have 
said  some  things  I  ought  not  to  have  said ;  but  I  am  told 


298  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

that  every  moment  is  precious,  and  that  the  question  may 
be  decided  in  the  legislature  to-day  or  to-morrow;  or  that 
it  is  perhaps  decided  now.  Do  not  imagine,  for  a  moment, 
that  this  is  a  question  which  concerns  only  our  native 
state ;  for  it  embraces  the  whole  country,  and  will  decide 
the  character  of  the  whole  national  Democracy.  In  con- 
clusion, I  will  only  add  that  the  eyes  of  the  whole  nation 
are  fixed  upon  you,  and  that  to  your  hands  are  com- 
mitted the  future  destinies  of  the  Democratic  party. 
Pardon,  I  pray  you,  the  freedom  with  which  I  have 
addressed  you ;  it  is  no  time  for  soft  words  when  the 
character  and  integrity  of  that  party  are  at  stake.  Reflect 
long  and  well  before  you  give  the  decisive,  I  hope  it  may 
not  prove  the  fatal,  vote  ;  and  I  feel  assured  that  the  decis- 
ion will  be  such  as  will  preserve  your  honor,  that  of  the 
commonwealth  to  which  you  belong,  and  the  blessed 
Union  itself. 

I  remain,  gentlemen,  with  sincere  respect. 

Your  fellow  citizen  and  obedient  servant, 

S.  D.  BRADFORD. 
To  the  DEMOCRATIC  MEMBERS 

of  the  Legislature  of  Massachusetts. 


ADDRESS   AND  RESOLUTIONS, 

ADOPTED  BY   THE    DEMOCRATS   OF    NORFOLK  COUNTY. 

• 

Committee  on  the  Address, — Samuel  D.  Bradford,  West  Roxbury  ; 
Nathaniel  R.  Childs,  Dorchester ;  Ezra  "Wilkinson,  Dedham. 

Committee  on  Resolutions.  —  A.  Loring  Gushing,  Dorchester ; 
Caleb  Stetson,  Braintree  ;  William  W.  Comstock,  Wrentham. 

ADDRESS. 

FELLOW  CITIZENS, — The  duty  has  been  assigned  to  us  of 
preparing  an  address  to  accompany  the  report  of  the  pro- 
ceedings of  the  convention  assembled  at  Dedham  on  the 
14th  of  October.  It  is  a  task  which,  at  such  a  period  as 
this,  few  persons  would  probably  have  desired,  but  which 
should  not,  in  our  opinion,  be  declined. 

The  time  has  evidently  arrived  when  at  least  a  respect- 
able number  of  the  Democrats  of  Massachusetts,  dissatis- 
fied, if  not  utterly  disgusted,  with  the  proceedings  of  a 
portion  of  the  Democratic  party  in  the  legislature  during 
last  winter  and  spring,  have  resolved  to  remain  merely 
lookers  on  no  longer,  but  to  take  a  more  active  part,  and 
to  do  what  they  can  to  place  that  party  once  more  upon 
the  platform  of  the  Union,  the  constitution,  and  the  laws. 

It  will  not  be  necessary,  nor  is  it  deemed  expedient,  to 
enter,  at  any  great  length,  into  the  detail  of  those  pro- 
ceedings, which  have  gained,  for  our  state  and  county, 
such  an  unenviable  reputation.  The  history  of  them  will 
not  be  forgotten  soon,  and  is  one  which  every  true  patriot 
would  blot  out  from  the  record  if  he  could.  The  highest 


300  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

offices  in  the  commonwealth  put  up  for  competition,  and 
bargained  for  like  other  merchandise  on  sale  in  the  very 
capitol  of  the  state ;  Democrats,  Free  Soilers,and  Abolition- 
ists, all  holding  sessions  at  the  same  time,  and  sending  and 
receiving  delegations  from  one  another,  to  agree  upon  the 
prices  which  should  be  paid;  resolutions  introduced  into 
the  senate,  (and  passed,  too,  by  that  body,)  by  the  mem- 
ber for  Middlesex,  (who  long  since  expressed  the  hope 
"  that  he  might  live  and  die  in  the  faith  of  the  Hartford 
Convention,")  which  it  would  seem  could  have  had  no 
object  or  intent  but  to  irritate  and  offend  our  brethren  in 
the  south,  "  to  characterize  parties  by  geographical  dis- 
criminations," and  to  produce  "  those  jealousies  and  heart- 
burnings," against  which  Washington  warned  us  in  his 
Farewell  Address :  the  time  and  money  of  the  people 
wasted  in  electioneering  and  intrigue;  dissensions  and 
recrimination  between  members  of  the  same  party ;  and 
last,  though  not  least,  the  election  of  one  as  United  States 
senator,  who  had  always  acted  in  concert  with  Whigs, 
Free  Soilers,  and  Abolitionists,  who,  in  a  volume  of  his 
published  addresses  and  speeches,  has  inserted  one  deliv- 
ered in  Faneuil  Hall,  on  the  3d  October,  1850,  in  which, 
denouncing  the  President  of  the  United  States  for  having 
signed  the  fugitive  slave  bill,  he  remarked,  "  There  are 
depths  of  infamy,  as  there  are  heights  of  fame  ; "  and  added, 
"  Better  for  him  had  he  never  been  born  ;  better  for  his 
memory,  and  for  the  good  name  of  his  children,  had  he 
never  been  president."  These,  fellow  citizens,  are  some 
of  the  fruits  of  the  far-famed  coalition  (so  called)  of  last 
year.  If  they  be  such  as  you  approve,  and  as,  in  your 
opinion,  do  credit  to  the  state,  you  will  enter  into  it  again 
in  November  next.  If,  on  the  contrary,  you  consider  them 
as  disgraceful,  and  would  put  the  seal  of  your  condemna- 
tion upon  such  proceedings,  you  will  condemn  and  avoid 
such  an  unnatural  union,  and  will  cast  your  votes  for  such 


FREE  SOIL  COALITION  IN  MASSACHUSETTS.  301 

candidates  only  as  deserve  your  confidence  and  support. 
The  portrait  here  presented  is  no  production  of  fancy 
or  the  imagination.  The  charges  here  made  are  not 
denied  by  the  parties  themselves.  Some  of  them  have 
been  defended  upon  various,  but,  to  our  minds,  frivolous 
excuses ;  but,  of  the  traffic  in  offices,  we  are  not  aware 
that  any  defence  has  been  attempted  by  any  person  of 
character  or  respectability.  Nor  can  this  excite  any  sur- 
prise amongst  those  at  any.  rate,  who  can  call  to  mind  a 
similar  charge,  in  1825,  against  Mr.  Clay,  of  having  prom- 
ised to  Mr.  Adams  the  vote  of  Kentucky  on  condition  that 
Mr.  Adams  would,  if  elected,  make  him  his  secretary  of 
state  ;  which,  up  to  that  time,  had  almost  invariably  proved 
the  next  step  to  the  presidency.  Who,  that  was  living 
then,  can  have  forgotten  the  burst  of  indignation,  which 
the  very  suspicion  of  such  a  bargain  (for,  it  is  believed,  it 
was  never  proved,)  produced  from  Maine  to  Georgia ;  or 
who  can  doubt  that,  but  for  that  imputation  and  the 
change  of  his  politics,  this  eloquent  statesman  of  the  west, 
who,  for  so  many  years,  was  the  leader  of  the  Democratic 
party  in  congress,  and  who  has  since  held  the  same  place 
amongst  the  Whigs,  would  long  since  have  reached  the 
highest  honor  in  the  gift  of  the  nation  ?  His  rejection, 
under  the  circumstances,  is  creditable  to  the  people  of  the 
United  States,  and  evinces  a  regard  for  principle  which 
we  should  do  well  to  imitate;  as  all  must  admit  that  a 
candidate  for  that  high  office  should  be,  "like  Caesar's  wife, 
not  only  pure,  but  above  suspicion."  Can  we  wonder,  then, 
at  the  astonishment  produced  by  this  wholesale  auction  of 
offices  in  January  last,  or  that  it  was  unequivocally  con- 
demned in  every  state  of  the  Union  ? 

If,  then,  Massachusetts  has  been  thus  disgraced,  and  her 
good  name  brought  into  question,  what  advantages,  it 
may  be  asked,  social,  political,  or  physical,  has  she  received 
from  the  coalition  ?  Mention  has  been  made  by  the  Free 


WORKS  OF  S.  D  BRADFORD. 

Soil  press  of  three,  the  secret  ballot,  the  homestead  exemp- 
tion  bill,   and  the  general  corporation   law.      These,  of 
course,  are  new  measures  and  untried  experiments,  the 
value  of  which  can  only  be  proved  by  time  and  expe- 
rience.    It  is  hoped  they  will  be  found  to  work  well,  and 
to  promote  the  good  of  the  people  ;  but,  whatever  may  be 
their  operation,  they  sink  into  utter  insignificance  in  com- 
parison with  the  question  of  sustaining  the  honor  and 
former  high  character  of  the  state.     In  the  mean  time,  it 
is  a  subject  of  the  deepest  regret  and  mortification  to  your 
committee,  and,  as  we  believe,  to  a  large  majority  of  the 
people  of  Massachusetts,  that  the  choice  of  United  States 
senator  for  six  long  years  has  fallen  upon  a  Whig  and 
Abolitionist,  who  has  publicly  denounced  a  law  of  con- 
gress, as  unconstitutional  and  unjust,  which  was  enacted 
to  preserve  the  Union  at  the  moment  of  its  greatest  dan- 
ger, and  who,  comparing  it  to  the  stamp  act   of  1765, 
expressed  the  hope  "  that  the  parallel  might  be  contin- 
ued until  it  should  produce  the  same  burst  of  public  feel- 
ing against  any  action  under  it,  which  glowed  in   the 
breasts  of  our   fathers   against  the  former   law."     How 
speedily  the  wishes  of  Mr.  Sumner  were  realized  by  the 
disgraceful  proceedings   in    Boston,    where    the    officers 
of  the    court  were    resisted    and   overcome ;   where  the 
majesty  of  justice  and  law  was  openly  insulted  and  vio- 
lated under  the  very  eyes  of  the  judge,  and    the  pris- 
oner assisted  in  making  his  escape,  you  all  have  witnessed, 
and  will  no  doubt  long  remember.     The  rebellion  of  Dan- 
iel Shays,  in  1786,  which  alarmed  so  much  the  early  guard- 
ians of  our  republic,  was  an  offence  of  a  venial  character 
compared  to  this.     He  only  sent  a  message  to  the  judges 
of  the  supreme   court  in  session  at  Springfield,  ordering 
them  not-to  open  the  court,  or  indict  the  rebels.     The  Free 
Soilers  and  Abolitionists  at  Boston  burst  open  the  doors 
of  the  court  house,  and  liberated  the  prisoner. 


FREE  SOIL  COALITION  IN  MASSACHUSETTS.  303 

The  history  of  this  fugitive  slave  bill,  and  the  opposi- 
tion which  has  been  made  to  it,  are  amongst  the  most 
extraordinary  events  of  the  day.  Prior  to  1850,  the 
country  had  been  living  under  a  similar  law  for  fifty- 
seven  years,  and  before  the  organization  of  the  Abolition 
party,  it  had  always  been  carried  into  effect  when  cases 
arose  under  it,  without  complaint  from  any  quarter.  It 
was  passed  during  the  administration  of  Washington, 
received  his  signature,  and  was  approved  by  the  coun- 
try. In  August,  1850,  a  similar  bill  was  passed  by  the 
national  legislature,  which  might  be  characterized  as 
rather  an  old  law  than  a  new  one — having,  however, 
certain  amendments,  which  had  become  necessary  on 
account  of  certain  enactments  by  two  or  three  state  legis- 
latures, which  had  impaired  the  effect  of  the  former  law. 
It  was  considered  by  competent  judges  morfe  favorable 
to  the  slave  than  the  law  of  1793,  had  been  pronounced 
constitutional  by  every  distinguished  jurist  whose  atten- 
tion had  been  called  to  it,  passed  both  the  senate  and 
house  of  representatives  by  large  majorities,  after  a  pro- 
tracted debate  in  the  former  of  three  days,  and  seemed, 
at  the  time,  to  be  satisfactory  to  both  of  the  great  polit- 
ical parties  in  Congress.  Shortly  after,  however,  an  agi- 
tation was  commenced  against  it  of  the  most  violent  and 
determined  character,  and  combinations  were  formed  for 
resisting  it,  even  to  violence  and  bloodshed.  A  large 
meeting  was  convened  at  Faneuil  Hall  on  the  3d  of 
October  last,  where  violent  speeches  were  made,  and  res- 
olutions adopted,  which,  by  some  persons,  were  declared 
to  involve  the  crime  of  treason — and  the  agitation  has 
been  continued  ever  since,  in  different  parts  of  the 
country,  attended,  in  some  cases,  with  loss  of  life,  arid 
the  most  flagrant  violations  of  the  laws  of  the  land. 
The  chief,  if  not  the  sole  participators  in  these  acts  of 
violence  and  resistance  to  the  constituted  authorities  have 


304  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

been  Free  Sellers  and  Abolitionists,  or  persons  influenced 
by  them  to  commit  these  outrages.  The  cause  or  excuse 
generally  assigned  has  been  compassion  for  the  slave,  and 
a  regard  to  what  has  been  called  "  the  higher  law."  How 
far  these  motives  have  influenced  the  actors,  you  can  all 
determine  for  yourselves  ;  but  it  is  certain  that,  until  lately, 
some  of  the  leaders  were  never  suspected  of  having  an 
extraordinary  degree  of  philanthropy,  and  have  been 
petitioners  for  offices,  which  require  a  solemn  oath  that 
"they  will,  to  the  best  of  their  ability,  preserve,  pro- 
tect, and  defend  the  constitution  of  the  United  States." 

Indeed,  the  organization,  if  not  the  very  name  of  the 
Free  Soil  party,  dates  only  from  1848,  the  year  in  which  it 
made  so  formidable  a  demonstration  at  Buffalo.  It  had  its 
origin  in  disappointed  ambition,  and  a  desire  to  prevent 
the  election  of  General  Cass  to  thfc  presidency.  It  suc- 
ceeded in  accomplishing  its  object,  and  there  its  career 
should  have  ended.  Without  doubt  it  would  have  termi- 
nated there,  had  it  not  been  sustained  by  disappointed 
Whigs  and  Democrats,  who  have  since  kept  it  alive  to  ad- 
vance their  own  selfish  purposes  and  designs.  It  has  found 
a  new  and  powerful  ally  in  the  coalition  of  last  winter, 
and  how  much  it  values  the  alliance,  and  feels  its  depend- 
ence upon  it,  is  proved  by  the  imploring  and  beseeching 
manner  in  which  it  begs  the  Democrats  to  continue  the 
unequal  and  nefarious  connection.  Prior  to  the  copartner- 
ship, the  Democrats  who  ventured  to  advocate  the  execu- 
tion of  the  fugitive  slave  bill,  were  called,  by  the  leading 
organs  of  the  Free  Soil  press,  "abandoned  scoundrels," 
"  slave-catchers,"  "  voluntary  serfs  and  minions  of  the  slave 
power,"  "  dupes  and  doughfaces,"  "  hirelings  and  mercenary 
traitors."  The  public  were  cautioned  against  all  associa- 
tion with  them,  and  their  presence  was  declared  to  be  "  a 
defilement." 

What  a  change  do  we  witness  now,  upon  the  eve  of 


FREE  SOIL  COALITION  IN  MASSACHUSETTS.  305 

another  election,  on  the  part  of  the  same  Free  Soilers  ! 
Our  ears  are  dulcified  by  the  soft  sounds  of  "charity,"  and 
"  Christian  forgiveness."  In  one  of  their  leading  journals, 
we  were  reminded,  only  a  few  days  ago,  of  the  necessity 
of  "  generous  concession,"  "  candor,"  and  "  a  little  worldly 
wisdom."  "Agreeing,"  says  this  exponent  of  Free  Soil 
principles  before  alluded  to,  "  what  is  to  be  done,  it  is  per- 
fectly immaterial  who  does  it.  Extremists  must  moderate 
their  views  somewhat ;  they  must  remember  that  honesty 
is  not  a  plant  of  peculiar  local  or  individual  growth,  but  is 
to  some  extent  indigenous  to  all  minds.  Free  Soilers  can- 
not be  expected  to  vote  for  men  who  have  labored,  in 
season  and  out  of  season,  to  ridicule  and  reproach  them  ; 
nor  can  Democrats  vote  for  Free  Soilers  who,  in  all  un- 
charitableness,  have  pronounced  them  '  to  be  almost  if  not 
altogether  accursed.'  Such  men  should  tarry  in  the  shade 
awhile,  and  divest  themselves  of  their  censoriousness  and 
undue  heat." 

Such,  fellow  citizens,  are  the  instructions  which  your 
newly  acquired  allies,  the  Free  Soilers,  would  lay  down 
for  your  guidance  on  the  second  Monday  of  November 
next.  Surely  you  will  say  of  the  writer  of  these  instruc- 
tions, as  Othello  said  of  lago, 

"  This  fellow  's  of  exceeding  honesty, 
And  knows  all  qualities,  with  a  learned  spirit 
Of  human  dealings  ;  " 

and,  if  we  mistake  not,  you  will  b  e  of  the  opinion  that  such 
rules  "  are  more  honored  in  the  breach  than  the  observ- 
ance." 

It  requires  but  a  plain  statement  of  facts  to  perceive 
what  deception  has  been  practised  upon  you  from  the 
commencement.  It  has  been  repeatedly  asserted  by  some 
of  the  most  truthful  and  respectable  individuals  composing 
the  Democratic  party,  that  it  was  fully  agreed  and  perfectly 


306  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

understood  between  the  members  of  the  two  parties,  who 
entered  into  the  coalition  at  first,  that  it  should  be  con- 
fined strictly  and  solely  to  state  affairs  and  politics,  and 
should  not  be  extended  to  national  concerns  at  all.  Now 
be  pleased  to  compare  this  statement  with  that  of  a  writer 
in  the  Commomveatth  journal,  who  addressed  a  letter  to  the 
editors  of  that  paper,  on  the  30th  of  January  last,  over  the 
initials  of  H.  W.,  understood  to  have  been  those  of  the 
Honorable  Henry  Wilson,  late  president  of  the  senate. 

In  that  communication,  General  Wilson  remarks  :  "The 
Free  Soil  committee  proposed  to  concede  the  governor  to 
the  Democrats,  on  condition  that  the  United  States  sena- 
tor should  be  conceded  to  Free  Soilers.  The  committee 
stated  that  the  Free  Soil  party  went  into  the  late  election 
for  the  purpose  of  securing  the  senator.  The  Free  Soilers 
had  avowed  this  in  their  journals  before  the  people.  This 
was  the  motive  that  induced  them  to  form  the  union  with 
the  Democracy  for  the  choice  of  senators  and  representa- 
tives!" If  this  statement  be  correct,  those  Democrats 
who  entered  into  the  coalition  in  November  last,  have 
been  grossly  deceived,  and  should  they  consent  to  continue 
it,  would  seem  to  verify  those  lines  of  Hudibras, 

« 

"  Doubtless  the  pleasure  is  as  great, 
Of  being  cheated  as  to  cheat." 

To  mention  another  instance  of  want  of  sincerity,  if  not 
of  honesty,  on  the  part  of  the  Free  Soilers  :  The  reputed 
author  of  the  Whig  State  Address,  Mr.  Everett,  has  stated, 
"  that,  of  the  Free  Soil  party,  one  half  at  least  must  be 
supposed  to  have  been  originally  Whigs,  and  to  concur 
with  the  mass  of  the  Whig  party  in  their  views  of  gen- 
eral political  questions."  This  estimate  must  be  supposed 
to  be  correct  upon  the  principle  that  every  shepherd  is 
supposed  to  know  his  own  sheep  better  than  a  stranger. 
Yet  the  reason  the  Free  Soilers  allege  for  having  left  the 


FREE  SOIL  COALITION  IN  MASSACHUSETTS.  307 

Whigs,  is  "their  subserviency  to  the  slave  power/'  and 
"  their  having  deserted  the  ground  upon  which,  it  is 
asserted,  they  once  stood ; "  and  this  is  the  principal,  if 
if  not  the  sole  cause  we  have  seen  assigned ;  and,  to  rem- 
edy this  difficulty,  they  have  united  with  the  Democratic 
party,  which  advocated  the  annexation  of  Texas,  voted  for 
the  war  with  Mexico,  and  against  the  Wilmot  proviso,  and 
heretofore  have  always  been  charged,  by  the  Free  Soilers 
and  Abolitionists,  as  the  chief  supporters  of  slavery  !  One 
of  their  pleas  for  this  is,  that  they  sympathize  with  the 
Democrats  "in  desiring  certain  state  reforms,"  which,  how- 
ever, are  of  a  character  which  they  had  heretofore  opposed 
from  the  beginning.  Mr,  Palfrey,  too,  the  present  candi- 
date for  governor,  in  his  letter  to  the  Free  Soil  members 
of  the  legislature,  dated  the  sixth  of  January  last,  stated 
that  he  should  have  voted  for  Mr.  Winthrop  for  speaker 
of  the  congress  house  of  representatives,  had  he  not  con- 
sidered him  "  as  wanting  in  his  attachment  for  freedom." 
Do  not  suppose,  then,  that,  in  voting  with  Free  Soilers, 
you  are  promoting  the  cause  of  a  party  having  any  fixed 
and  defined  principles  of  their  own.  That  would  be  to 
commit  a  great  error. 

If  the  Free  Soilers  do  sympathize  so  warmly  with  the 
Democrats,  and  approve  so  highly  "  the  state  reforms " 
already  achieved,  and  others  understood  to  be  in  contem- 
plation, why  have  they  not  declared,  in  advance,  their 
intention  to  vote  for  our  present  justly  popular  chief  mag- 
istrate on  the  second  Monday  of  November,  instead  of 
enacting  the  pitiful  farce  of  holding  a  state  convention  at 
Worcester,  for  nominating  a  gentleman  for  governor,  who, 
they  knew,  could  never  be  elected  by  the  people,  and 
whom  they  doubtless  intend  to  desert  upon  the  first  oppor- 
tunity when,  it  having  been  decided  that  there  is  no 
choice  by  the  people,  the  election  will  devolve  upon  the 
legislature,  when  they  probably  intend  to  vote  for  Gov- 


308  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

ernor  Boutwell  again.  That  would  have  been  the  honest 
course,  and  one  which  would  have  commended  itself  to 
men  of  honest  minds.  It  may,  perhaps,  excite  the  won- 
der of  some  persons  that  any  respectable  gentleman  can 
be  found  who  will  permit  "his  name  to  be  associated  (to 
use  the  words  of  the  candidate  of  the  Free  Soilers)  with 
the  votes  they  are  about  to  cast." 

It  cannot,  it  is  hoped,  be  necessary  to  enlarge  upon 
these  topics  to  open  the  eyes  of  all  true  Democrats  to  the 
real  character  of  the  persons  with  whom  they  have  been 
acting  in  concert.  Let  any  one  ask  himself  the  ques- 
tions,— Why  should  such  a  coalition  be  continued  ?  Is 
there  any  union  of  opinion  or  sympathy  of  feeling  between 
Democrats  and  Free  Soilers?  Has  not  each  party  repeat- 
edly expressed  the  detestation  it  has  of  the  principles 
and  sentiments  entertained  by  the  other  ?  Has  not  Free 
Soilism  now,  whatever  it  may  have  been  once,  become 
identified  with  Abolitionism  and  resistance  to  the  laws  ? 
Is  it  not  sectional,  whereas  Democracy  is  and  always  has 
been  national,  in  the  most  enlarged  sense  of  the  word  ? 

Turn  to  the  resolutions  adopted  by  the  Democratic 
convention,  assembled  at  Worcester  on  the  20th  August. 
Do  they  not  sustain  the  Union,  the  constitution,  and  the 
compromise  measures,  including  the  fugitive  slave  bill, 
all  of  which  the  Free  Soilers  have  denounced  ?  What 
question,  except  that  of  obedience  to  this  bill,  is  now  a  sub- 
ject of  much  discussion  or  interest,  either  in  the  halls  of 
legislation,  or  at  public  meetings  of  any  kind  ?  And  not 
without  good  cause  ;  for  any  person  of  observation  or 
reflection  must  perceive  that  on  its  just  and  faithful 
execution  the  Union  itself  depends. 

At  no  former  period  were  so  many  of  our  brethren  in 
the  south  anxiously  watching  the  proceedings  of  the 
people  of  Massachusetts,  and  one  may  not  fear  to  venture 
the  assertion  that  the  success  or  defeat  of  the  disunionists 


FREE  SOIL  COALITION  IN  MASSACHUSETTS.  309 

in  South  Carolina,  Georgia,  and  Mississippi,  depends  on 
the  execution  or  defeat  of  the  fugitive  slave  bill  in  this 
and  the  other  free  states  of  the  republic.     In  the  selec- 
tion of  candidates,  therefore,  to  represent  you  in  the  legis- 
lature or  in  a  national  convention,  it  is  of  vital  importance 
that  you  should  select  such  persons  as  will  sustain  "  the 
compromise  measures  as  they  are,  and  will  oppose  all 
agitation  of  the  questions  settled  by  them."     Will  you 
continue  to  act  another  year  with  those  who  have  deceived 
you,  have  compromised  the  good  character  of  the  com- 
monwealth, and  openly  advocated  resistance  to  the  laws  ? 
Why,  fellow  citizens,  we  may  take  an  example  of  what  we 
ought  to  do,  even  from  one  of  the  leaders  of  the  Free 
Soil  party  itself,  the  learned  gentleman  who  has  been 
nominated  for  the  office  of  governor  for  the  ensuing  year. 
In  the  letter,  to  which  we  have  already  referred,  when  he 
perceived  that  the  members  of  his  party  were  about  to 
join  a  coalition  with  the  Democrats,  which  his  conscience 
told  him  could  not  be  honestly  done,  he  urgently  besought 
them  not  to  vote  for  Mr.  Bout  well,  "  who,"  he  said,  "  would 
do  nothing  for  freedom."     In  the  same  spirit  we  would 
say  to  you,  with  all  due  respect,  Do  not  on  any  account 
vote  for  a  Free  Soiler  or  Abolitionist,  who  will  be  certain 
to  do  all  he  can  to  agitate  the  people  to  resist  the  laws,  to 
sow  dissension  and  discord  between  the  free  and  the  slave 
states,  and,  if  his  object  cannot  be  accomplished  in  any 
other  way,  to  dissolve  the  Union. 

Do  not  hesitate  to  strike  off  the  names  of  all  such  per- 
sons from  the  votes  you  may  give  on  the  second  Monday 
of  November  next. 

Be  assured  the  longer  you  continue  the  connection  the 
deeper  the  moral  and  political  corruption  will  sink  into 
your  souls.  Every  patriot  must  grieve  to  perceive  to  what 
a  degree  it  has  tainted  the  public  sentiment  already. 

Surely  there  was  great  truth  as  well  as  pertinent  meta- 


310  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

phor  in  those  words  of  Bishop  Watson  after  D'Alembert, 
when  speaking  of  court  favors,  and  the  corrupting  influ- 
ence of  the  emoluments  of  office,  he  remarked,  that  "  the 
highest  officers  in  church  and  state  resemble  a  pyramid, 
whose  top  is  accessible  to  only  two  sorts  of  animals,  eagles 
and  reptiles.  My  pinions,"  he  added,  "  were  not  strong 
enough  to  pounce  upon  its  top,  and  I  scorned  by  creeping 
to  ascend  its  summit."  If  our  politicians  would  be  gov- 
erned by  this  honorable  and  independent  spirit,  we  should 
not  be  soon  called  upon  to  wipe  off  the  disgrace  of  another 
coalition. 

We  have  thus  endeavored,  fellow  citizens,  to  give  you 
a  plain,  unvarnished  history  of  the  past,  that  you  may  be 
able  to  act  understandingly  for  the  future.  It  has  not 
been  our  intention  to  speak  with  harshness,  but  with  mod- 
eration and  truth.  We  have  no  personal  injuries  to 
redress,  no  private  animosities  to  gratify.  Our  hopes  and 
aspirations  begin  and  end  in  the  honor,  the  integrity,  and 
the  success  of  the  great  national  Democratic  party,  which 
is  connected  with  so  many  glorious  reminiscences  of  the 
past,  and  encouraged  by  so  many  animating  hopes  for  the 
future,  if  it  prove  true  to  its  principles,  and  to  the  cause 
of  liberty  and  truth.  On  no  account  would  we  attempt 
to  influence  you  by  dictation,  or  by  any  other  unworthy 
means.  The  issue  is  in  your  hands,  where  we  cheerfully 
leave  it.  Look  back  to  the  unworthy  expedients  which 
have  been  adopted  to  place  you  in  the  position  you  now 
hold,  and  forward  to  the  consequences,  should  the  coalition 
be  longer  continued. 

Remember  that  "  the  constitution  is  the  object  of  our 
reverence,  the  bond  of  our  Union,  our  defence  in  danger, 
the  source  of  our  prosperity  in  peace,"  and  that  Free  Soil- 
ism  resists  its  injunctions  and  violates  its  laws.  Remem- 
ber, too,  the  exalted  attitude  exhibited  by  Norfolk,  during 
the  memorable  contest  with  England  in  1812 ;  and  what- 


FREE  SOIL  COALITION  IN  MASSACHUSETTS.  311 

ever  may  be  the  course  pursued  by  other  sections  of  the 
state,  let  there  be  one  spot,  at  any  rate,  uncontaminated 
by  the  slime  of  coalition,  and  which  is  true  to  the  princi- 
ples of  '  76  and  '  98. 

Recollect  that  the  vote  you  will  soon  be  called  upon  to 
give,  concerns  not  only  the  honor  and  integrity  of  our 
county,  but  of  our  state  and  of  our  common  country ;  and 
that  you  cannot  be  Democrats  and  Free  Soilers  at  the 
same  time. 

Reflect  seriously  upon  these  things,  and  we  feel  assured 
that  your  decision  will  be  just,  and  will  do  credit  to  your- 
selves, and  to  our  ancient  county  and  commonwealth. 


RESOLUTIONS. 

1.  Resolved,  That  the  great  objects  of  the  Democratic  party  are, 
and  ever  have  been,  from  the  date  of  its  origin,  the  preservation, 
unimpaired,  of  the  great  republican  principles  expressed  in  our 
constitution,  and  from  time  to  time  embodied  in  it,  by  virtue  of, 
and  according  to,  its  own  provisions — the  faithful  performance  of 
all  compacts  and  agreements  therein  contained  or  entered  into  under 
it — the  determined  and  honest  support  of  every  law  constitutionally 
enacted,  without  distinction,  so  long  as  it  remains  a  law,  and  its 
continuance  as  a  law,  so  long  as  the  constitution  requires  it — secu- 
rity to  the  rights  and  liberties  of  all  by  a  strict  construction  of  the 
constitution,  and,  above  all,  the  continuance  of  peace,  good  fellow- 
ship, and  prosperity  within  our  borders,  by  opposing  all  interference 
on  the  part  of  one  state  with  another ;  it  is  not  by  any  new  test 
that  therefore  opposition  to  the  new  compromise  measures  is  con- 
sidered a  departure  from  trie  Democratic  platform,  but  by  an  appli- 
cation of  old  principles  to  a  new  emergency. 

£.  Resolved,  That  the  obligation  to  deliver  up  fugitives  from 
service,  upon  claim,  to  whom  such  service  may  be  due,  is  fully 
recognized  by  the  constitution  of  the  United  States,  and  consequently 


31£  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

an  unconditional  repeal  of  the  present  fugitive  slave  law,  leaving  no 
law  enforcing  such,  constitutional  obligation,  is  a  violation  of  the 
constitution  itself,  being  a  refusal  to  carry  out  and  fulfil  its  plainest 
requirements  by  the  only  means  through  which  such  obligation  can 
be  enforced — a  substitution  of  anarchy  and  confusion  for  law  and 
order,  and  an  act  of  treachery  to  our  sister  states — that,  therefore, 
the  Free  Soil  party,  organized  to  effect  such  a  repeal  of  the  fugitive 
slave  law,  is,  so  far,  a  party  arrayed  against  the  constitution,  the 
laws  under  the  same,  and  the  peace  and  good  order  of  the  Union. 

3.  Resolved,  That  the  principles  of  the  Whig  party  of  to-day, 
manifested  in  opposition  to  all  reforms  with  reference  to  the  sub- 
stantial good  of  the  whole,  and  in  favor  of  special  legislation  only 
for  the  benefit  of  the  few — in  their  general  distrust  of  the  people, 
and  in  their  attempt  to  enslave  domestic  labor,  under  the  specious 
cry  of  protection  against  foreign  labor,  are  the  same  against  which 
the  Democracy  of  the  country  have  been  called  upon  to  defend  our 
institutions  and  the  rights  of  all  under  them,  from  their  very  origin 
in  our  earlier  times  "  that  tried  men's  souls  " — in  the  foreign  war 
of  1812,  in  the  almost  civil  war  during  the  administration  of  the 
illustrious  Jackson,  and  in  their  base  treachery  to  our  noble  soldiery 
while  fighting  our  country's  battles  in  the  wilds  of  Mexico. 

4.  Resolved^  That  a  coalition  with  any  party,  having  objects  to 
accomplish,  and  with  views  antagonistic  to  our  own,  for  any  politi- 
cal purpose,  is  utterly  inconsistent  with  a  strict  fidelity  to  the  prin- 
ciples we  profess,  as  it  cannot  be  effected  without  giving  strength 
to  the  party  with  which  such  a  coalition  may  be  formed ;  thereby 
aiding  and  encouraging  enemies  to  the  cause  of  true  republicanism 
— weakening  our  influence  for  good — paralyzing  our  efforts,  and 
spreading   distrust  and  confusion  throughout  the   great    national 
Democratic  party. 

5.  Resolved,  That  we  most  heartily  approve  of  the  reformatory 
measures  of  the  last  session  of  our  state  legislature,  as  emphatically 
Democratic  in  their  character — in  the  general  banking  law,  and  the  act 
relating  to  joint  stock  companies,  giving  to  all  equally,  as  a  right, 
what  heretofore  has  been  granted  to  a  few  only  as  a  privilege — in 
the  secret  ballot  act,  protecting  from  insulting  espionage  the  exer- 
cise of  a  freeman's  most  sacred  right,  the  right  to  vote  uninfluenced 
but  by  his  just  sense  of  duty  to  himself,  his  country,  and  his  Maker 


FREE  SOIL  COALITION  IN  MASSACHUSETTS.  313 

— to  vote  in  secret,  as  he  worships  in  secret, — in  the  act  relating  to 
insolvent  corporations,  bringing  them  more  directly  within  the  reach 
of  the  law  and  their  creditors — in  the  homestead  exemption  act, 
securing  to  all  a  home,  a  haven  of  rest  at  the  close  of  the  voyage  of 
life — and  especially,  in  the  act  relating  to  a  revision  of  the  constitu- 
tion by  the  people,  that  it  may  more  fully  harmonize  with  the  prog- 
ress and  spirit  of  the  age ; — and  being  determined  to  advance  to 
other  and  even  more  salutary  reforms,  we  cordially  invite  the 
cooperation  of  all  friends  of  Democratic  equality  to  join  us  in  the 
cause  of  the  people. 

6.  Resolved)  That,  having  entire  confidence  in  the  integrity, 
ability,  and  nationality  of  George  S.  Boutwell  and  Henry  "W.  Gush- 
man,  we  most  cordially  respond  to  their  nominations  for  governor 
and  lieutenant  governor  of  this  commonwealth  ;  and  we  here  pledge 
ourselves  to  use  every  honest  endeavor  to  reinstate  them  in  those 
offices  which  they  have  adorned  by  a  strict  and  faithful  discharge  of 
their  respective  duties. 

40 


DEMOCRATIC    RATIFICATION 
MEETING. 


REGULAR   TOASTS. 

1.  Franklin  Pierce  and  William  R.  King  —  They  deserve,  and  will  receive  the 
support  of  the  Democracy  of  the  Union,  in  November  next.     Nine  cheers. 

2.  Democracy  and  the  Union  —  one  and  inseparable  !  who  ever  knew  a  Demo- 
crat hostile  to  the  Union  ?     Music. 

3.  The  Democracy  of  the  town  of  Randolph  —  always  on  hand  when  true  men 
are  to  be  supported  —  and  just  measures  to  be  sustained.     Nine  cheers. 

4.  The  Whig  candidate  for  the  Presidency  —  selected  for  his  availability  —  the 
Democracy  of  the  Union,  by  the  election  of  Franklin  Pierce,  will  render  availa- 
bility unavailable.     Three  cheers. 

5.  The  Press  —  The  watchmen  on  the  watch  tower  —  They  proclaim  that  the 
fires  burn  brightly  in  the  Democratic  wigwam.     Three  cheers. 

6.  Disaffection  to  the  Union  —  known  only  among  the  opponents  of  Democracy. 
Six  cheers. 

7.  The  election  in  November  —  the  Democracy  of  the  nation  is  united  —  victory 
is  certain  !     Six  cheers. 

8.  The  Democratic  platform  —  it  places  the  Democratic  party  on    the  high 
national  and  patriotic  ground,  for  which  it  has  ever  been  distinguished.     Nine 
cheers. 

9.  The  memory  of  General  Jackson —  "He  lives  forever  in  the  voice  of  fame." 
Music  —  Dirge. 

10.  General  Scott  —  Fired  with  indignation,  he  took  a  hasty  plate  of  soup. 
Three  cheers. 

11.  The  sages  and  the  heroes  of  the  Revolution  —  the  Democracy  will  secure 
the  fruits  of  their  wisdom  and  their  valor.     Six  cheers. 

12.  The  most  impudent  man  living  —  The  Massachusetts  Democrat  who  carps 
at  the  Democratic  platform.     Nine  cheers. 

13.  The  Democracy  of  the  eighth  district  —  they  will  give  a  good  account  of 
themselves  in  November  next.     Nine  cheers. 

After  the  dinner,  the  following  sentiment  was  proposed 
by  Arthur  W.  Austin,  Esq.,  one  of  the  vice  presidents : 

The  late  Democratic  convention  at  Baltimore  —  it  made  no  mistakes. 

To  which  the  Hon.  Samuel  D.  Bradford  responded  in 
the  following  speech : 


ELECTION  OF  GENERAL  PIERCE.  315 


SPEECH  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD,  ESQ. 

GENTLEMEN, — In  rising  to  address  you  upon  this  occa- 
sion, I  feel  it  is  one  of  the  most  interesting  and  joyful 
upon  which  we  have  ever  assembled.     You  did  me  the 
honor,  in  October  last,  to  elect  me  your  delegate  to  the 
Baltimore  convention,  and  inclination  as  well  as  custom 
prompt  me  to  come  before  you  this  day,  and  give  an 
account  of  the  manner  in  which  the  trust  committed  to 
me    has    been    discharged.      That    convention   met    by 
appointment  on  the  first  Tuesday  of  June,  and  on  the 
fifth  of  June  made  the  nominations  which  have  been 
announced;    and  we  have    come   up  here   to-day,  as  I 
understand  it,  to  express  our  opinion  upon  the  same,  and, 
if  we  approve,  to  ratify  them.     For  the  first  time  in  the 
history  of  our  republic,  the  nomination  has  fallen  upon  a 
Democrat  who  is  a  native  and  resident  of  New  England ; 
and,  what  is  equally  worthy  of  note,  his  name  was  first 
proposed  to  the  convention  by  Virginia,  the  venerable 
mother  of  states,  statesmen,  and  heroes,  and  the  native 
state  of  Washington.     Yes,  gentlemen,  it  was  the  noble 
state  of  Virginia  which  first  cast  its  vote  for  our  honored 
nominee,  and  we  are  assured  by  the  nominee  himself  that 
"  the  delegation  from  New  Hampshire,  with  all  the  glow 
of  state  pride,  and  all  the  warmth  of  personal  regard, 
would  not  have  submitted  his  name  to  the  convention, 
nor  would  they  have  cast  a  vote  for  him  under  any  cir- 
cumstances other   than  those  which  occurred."     No  occa- 
sion, it  seems  to  me,  then,  could  be  more  interesting  than 
this,  or  awaken  in  our  hearts  more  lively  sentiments  of 
patriotism,  of  friendship  for  our  brethren  of  the  south,  and 
of  love  of  our  blessed  and  happy  Union.     It  was  pecu- 
liarly gratifying  at  a  period  like  this  to  receive  such  a 
mark  of  confidence  and  regard  from  a  sister  state,  possess- 


316  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

ing  as  she  does  so  many  great  and  distinguished  statesmen 
of  her  own.  It  produced  the  happiest  effect  in  the  con- 
vention, and  mainly  contributed  to  the  fortunate  result 
which  we  have  recently  witnessed.  May  I  not,  then, 
gentlemen,  express  the  hope  that  the  proceedings  of  the 
convention  have  met  your  entire  approbation,  and  that 
you  are  ready  to  ratify  and  confirm  them  ?  If  any 
dependence  can  be  placed  upon  the  public  press,  it  seems 
to  me  they  have  received  the  unanimous  approbation  of 
the  whole  Democratic  party  from  Maine  to  Georgia.  At 
all  events,  I  may  venture  to  say  that  your  delegate,  as 
well  as  his  substitute,  the  Hon.  Bradford  L.  Wales,  who 
was  also  present  at  Baltimore,  were  very  desirous  of  meet- 
ing your  wishes,  and  acted  in  the  manner  which  they 
deemed  best  for  the  interest  of  the  great  republican 
party,  without  favor  or  partiality.  It  was  not,  of  course, 
entirely  a  question  of  who  was  the  best  man ;  but  we  had 
to  consider  who  was  fit  for  the  office,  and  who,  also,  could 
command  two-thirds  of  all  the  votes.  If  I  consented  to 
accept  the  appointment  of  your  delegate  with  reluctance 
at  first,  candor  requires  me  to  confess  that  I  have  been 
well  rewarded  for  any  time  or  attention  I  may  have 
devoted  to  it,  and  that  the  proceedings,  especially  of  the 
last  day,  were  interesting  in  the  highest  degree,  and  will 
be  long  remembered.  It  was  gratifying  to  witness  the 
perfect  harmony  and  courtesy  which  prevailed  from  first 
to  last. 

I  do  not  remember  to  have  heard  a  disparaging  remark 
made  by  any  one  during  the  five  days  we  were  in  session ; 
and  those  discordant  words,  Freesoiler  and  Abolitionist, 
only  once  grated  upon  my  ears.  But  what,  most  of  all, 
excited  my  admiration,  was  the  kind  spirit  and  generosity 
displayed  by  the  several  delegations  on  the  last  day  of 
the  session,  in  giving  up  their  favorite  candidates,  (to 
whom  some  of  them  had  unalterably  adhered  during  more 


ELECTION  OF  GENERAL  PIERCE.  317 

than  forty  ballotings,  and  upon  whom  all  their  future 
hopes  of  political  advancement  might  be  supposed  to 
depend,)  and,  for  the  sake  of  harmony  and  union,  casting 
their  votes  for  a  candidate  who  was  personally  unknown 
to  most  of  them,  and  whose  good  qualities  could  only  be 
confirmed  to  them  by  the  report  of  others — thus  laying 
down  all  their  personal  predilections  and  preferences  on 
the  altar  of  patriotism. 

It  was  a  noble  spectacle— one  which  could  be  witnessed 
only  in  our  beloved  country — and  I  may  add,  I  believe, 
without  exaggeration,  only  in  a  Democratic  convention. 
Virginia  first  set  the  example,  which  was  soon  followed  by 
all  her  sister  states,  and  with  a  cheerfulness  and  alacrity 
which  I  shall  never  forget. 

The  name  of  our  distinguished  nominee  was  received 
with  a  welcome,  and  seemed  to  inspire  a  confidence  and 
joy  which  I  cannot  express.  A  short  time  before,  after 
three  whole  days  of  balloting,  without  any  result,  we  felt 
as  if  unanimity  in  the  selection  of  a  candidate  was  impos- 
sible, and  that,  perhaps,  we  might  be  compelled  to  return 
home,  leaving  our  work  undone.  But  the  name  of  Frank- 
lin Pierce,  as  soon  as  it  was  proposed,  seemed  to  act  like  a 
charm,  and  all  our  difficulties  were  overcome  in  a  moment. 
The  delegates  rose  and  felicitated  one  another,  as  if  they 
had  escaped  from  some  great  and  common  danger.  Joy 
beamed  on  every  countenance;  congratulation  was  upon 
every  tongue.  It  would  not,  perhaps,  be  quite  true  to 
say  that  the  joy  experienced,  was  wholly  without  any  emo- 
tion of  regret,  for  no  doubt  the  thoughts  of  some  would  turn 
to  the  other  candidates,  whose  hopes  had  been  disappointed, 
and  many  probably  regretted  that  they  had  only  one  such 
high  distinction  to  confer. 

Amongst  the  candidates,  first  and  foremost,  was  the 
distinguished  statesman  and  diplomatist,  General  Cass, 
who  with  such  singular  ability  succeeded  in  preventing 


318  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

France  from  becoming  a  party  in  1842,  to  the  quintuple 
treaty,  which  was  designed  to  institute  an  odious  and  vex- 
atious police  over  the  freedom  of  the  seas.  Next  came 
James  Buchanan,  the  favorite  son  of  the  Keystone  state, 
of  incorruptible  integrity,  of  great  experience  and  wis- 
dom in  council,  who  had  served  his  country  faithfully  and 
long,  and  was  admirably  qualified  for  any  appointment, 
however  high.  There  was  Governor  Marcy,  too,  the 
favorite  adopted  son  of  the  Empire  State,  always  a  great 
favorite  with  all  true  Democrats,  never  swerving  in  his 
principles  or  friendships,  and  whose  administrative  talent, 
as  secretary,  contributed  so  largely  to  the  brilliant  victo- 
ries and  triumphant  success  of  the  Mexican  war ;  and 
then  came  Stephen  A.  Douglass,  a  native  of  the  Green 
Mountains  of  Vermont,  but  now  from  Illinois,  who  has 
been  called  "the  young  giant  of  the  west,"  because,  I' sup- 
pose, he  has  grown  so  rapidly  in  favor,  and  exhibited  such 
sagacity  and  ability  in  the  councils  of  the  nation,  that  at 
the  convention  ninety-two  delegates  cast  for  him  their 
votes,  and  pronounced  him  fit  to  be  the  successor  of  Wash- 
ington, Jefferson,  and  the  other  great  men  who  have 
filled  the  presidential  chair.  Besides  these,  there  were 
others,  whom  time  will  not  permit  me  to  name,  but  who 
had  "many  times  and  oft,"  exhibited  proofs  of  their  devo- 
tion to  their  country.  Well  have  these  statesmen  and 
patriots  proved  that  our  estimate  of  them  was  not  too 
high,  by  the  noble  and  generous  manner  in  which  they 
have  come  forward  and  pledged  their  support  to  the  nom- 
inations which  have  been  made.  Need  I  say  to  you,  gen- 
tlemen, that  I  sustained  the  nomination  of  Franklin 
Pierce,  and  that,  for  the  first  time  during  forty-nine  ballot- 
ings,  the  Massachusetts  delegates  were  unanimous  in 
awarding  to  him  the  vote  of  the  state  ?  Need  I  add  that 
I  approve  the  nomination,  that  I  rejoice  in  it,  and  that  it 
deserves  and  shall  receive  all  the  support  which  it  may 


ELECTION  OF  GENERAL  PIERCE.  319 

be  in  my  power  to  give  it  ?  I  like  it,  because  it  promises 
us  an  honest  and  economical  administration  of  the  govern- 
ment, a  strict  construction  of  the  constitution,  and  a  just 
and  equitable  execution  of  the  laws.  I  like  it,  because, 
should  our  nominee  be  chosen  president,  his  high  character 
will  enable  him  to  form  a  cabinet  of  the  ablest  and  best 
men  in  the  nation. 

We  shall  have  no  omnibus  internal  improvement  and 
river  and  harbor  bills,  but  every  expenditure  of  the  pub- 
lic money  will  be  regulated  by  justice  and  the  constitu- 
tion. I  like  the  nomination,  because,  beyond  all  others 
which  could  have  been  made,  it  unites  the  Democratic 
party  throughout  the  country;  abolishes  those  abomin- 
able nick-names  of  barn-burners  and  the  like,  and  pro- 
duces harmony  and  peace  even  in  the  Empire  State.  In 
confirmation  of  this,  already  has  John  Van  Buren,  the 
leader  of  the  Free  Soil  party,  at  the  ratification  meeting 
on  the  9th  of  June,  in  New  York,  come  back  to  the 
Democratic  fold,  given  in  his  adhesion  to  our  nominees, 
and  promised  to  support  them  "most  cheerfully;"  and  if 
we  may  judge  by  the  warmth  of  the  expressions  he  used, 
no  Swiss  soldier,  after  a  four  years'  service  under  a  foreign, 
flag,  ever  returned  more  delighted  to  his  native  moun- 
tains, or  listened  once  more  with  greater  joy  to  the  favor- 
ite national  song  of  the  Ranz  des  Vaches.  I  like  it,, 
because,  under  the  administration  of  our  nominee,  I  feeL 
a  perfect  assurance  that  peace  will  be  cultivated,  and  a 
liberal  intercourse  encouraged  with  all  nations,  and  OUT 
glorious  Union  be  defended  against  its  enemies,  be  they 
foreign  or  domestic.  I  am  certain,  also,  that  our  nominee- 
will  be  true  to  the  platform  of  principles  which  has  beent 
established  at  Baltimore,  and  which  was  received  with* 
such  unanimity  and  favor  by  the  convention.  Finally,  I 
like  the  nomination  because  it  has  fallen  upon  one  who  is 
a  wise  legislator,  a  brave  soldier,  and  an  honest  man,. 


320  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

universally  respected  and  admired  by  all  who  have  the 
pleasure  of  knowing  him. 

I  am  no  political  partisan  nor  man-worshipper,  and 
never  will  be.  I  shall  not,  in  my  ardor  to  promote  the 
election  of  General  Pierce,  ascribe  to  him  the  wisdom  of 
Solomon,  nor  shall  I  assert,  that,  as  a  military  man,  he  is 
equal  to  Marshal  Turenne.  His  best  eulogium  is  a  recital 
of  the  actions  of  his  past  life,  with  which  probably  all  of 
you  are  by  this  time  familiar,  in  which  case  I  am  sure  you 
cannot  wonder  at  the  enthusiasm  with  which  his  name  was 
received  by  the  convention.  Although  admirably  quali- 
fied to  fill  any  office,  however  high,  such  was  his  modesty, 
we  find  he  positively  declined  to  be  nominated  as  gov- 
ernor of  New  Hampshire,  refused  the  appointment  of 
attorney-general  tendered  him  by  his  personal  friend, 
President  Polk,  and  prevented  the  legislature  of  his 
native  state  from  nominating  him  for  the  presidency,  an 
office  so  much  sought  for  by  all,  and  which  some  one  has 
called  "  the  highest  upon  earth." 

Such  conduct  reminds  one  of  the  innate  modesty  of 
Washington,  who,  after  all  the  brilliant  victories  he  had 
gained  over  the  French  in  1759,  returned  to  Virginia  to 
receive  a  vote  of  thanks  from  the  House  of  Burgesses,  and 
of  whom  it  is  related  that,  "  when  the  speaker,  obeying 
the  resolve  of  the  house,  gave  him  the  thanks  of  Virginia 
for  his  services  to  his  country,  the  young  man,  taken  by 
surprise,  hesitated  for  words  as  he  rose  to  reply,  "  Sit 
down,"  rejoined  the  speaker,  "  your  modesty  is  equal  to 
your  valor,  and  that  surpasses  the  power  of  any  language 
I  possess."  I  will  only  detain  you,  gentlemen,  to  dwell 
for  a  moment  upon  the  conduct  of  General  Pierce  in  Mex- 
ico. Those  who  have  read  his  life  will  have  observed 
that  when,  in  1846,  he  declined  a  seat  in  the  cabinet  of 
President  Polk,  he  told  him  "  that,  when  he  resigned  his 
seat  in  the  senate  in  1842,  he  did  it  with  the  fixed  inten- 


ELECTION  OF  GENERAL  PIERCE.  321 

tion  never  again  to  be  voluntarily  separated  from  his  fam- 
ily for  any  considerable  length  of  time,  except  at  the  call 
of  his  country  in  the  time  of  war ;  a  very  singular  resolu- 
tion for  a  civilian  to  make  who  had  never  mixed  in  any 
way  in  the  din  and  bustle  of  war,  and  who  was  pursuing 
his  profession  in  the  quiet  town  of  Concord ;  and  it  proves 
his  intense  love  for  his  country.  Soon  after,  in  the  midst 
of  the  contest  with  Mexico,  the  president  sent  a  requisition 
for  a  battalion  of  volunteers  to  New  Hampshire,  upon 
which  General  Pierce  enrolled  as  a  private,  and  was  drilled 
in  the  ranks.  The  brave  Ransom,  who  afterwards  fell  in 
Mexico,  was  of  this  regiment ;  and  General  Pierce  wrote  to 
the  president,  and  requested  him  to  appoint  Colonel  Ran- 
som to  the  command  ;  but  the  president  decided  other- 
wise, and  appointed  our  illustrious  nominee  brigadier- 
general.  Through  his  exertions,  the  battalion  was  soon 
raised,  and  he  and  his  "cheerful  lads"  (as  he  afterwards 
called  them)  embarked  for  Vera  Cruz,  and,  as  soon  as  he 
was  able,  he  pushed  forward  for  the  interior,  and  joined 
General  Scott.  He  took  an  active  part  in  the  several 
brilliant  actions  which  followed,  at  the  head  of  his  regi- 
ment. Wherever  the  danger  was  the  greatest,  there  he 
and  his  brave  soldiers  were  to  be  found.  In  one  attack, 
having  fallen  from  his  horse,  like  Antaeus,  he  rose  again, 
but  not  the  stronger  for  the  fall ;  for  he  was  seriously  in- 
jured ;  but  he  mounted  another  horse,  refused  to  leave 
the  field,  and,  except  on  one  occasion,  when  sickness  con- 
fined  him  to  his  bed,  he  continued  to  battle  for  his  coun- 
try until  the  flag,  with  the  stars  and  stripes,  was  seen, 
floating  over  the  walls  of  the  city  of  the  Montezumas. 

The  war  being  ended,  he  resigned  his  commission,  was 
complimented  by  the  warmest  declarations  of  approbation 
from  his  brother  officers,  and  especially  from  the  com- 
mand er-in-chief,  General  Scott,  and  returned  to  his  native 
state,  New  Hampshire,  there  to  receive  the  thanks  of  his 

41 


WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

grateful  countrymen,  having  nobly  fulfilled  the  pledge 
which  he  gave,  when  taking  leave  of  some  friends  in  Bos- 
ton,— "  I  will  come  back  with  honor,  or  I  will  not  come 
back." 

Gentlemen,  can  you  conceive  of  any  conduct  more  pat- 
riotic, more  heroic,  than  this  ?  It  was  well  and  truly  said 
by  Mr.  Buchanan,  in  his  admirable  letter,  which  was 
recently  published,  upon  the  qualifications  of  our  nominees, 
"  that  General  Pierce's  military  services  in  Mexico  consti- 
tute a  beautiful  episode  in  his  life."  Had  he  been  a  grad- 
uate of  West  Point,  or  belonged  to  the  regular  army,  as 
was  the  case  with  General  Scott,  his  conduct  would  not 
have  excited  any  surprise,  for  he  would  have  done  only 
what  the  government  had  called  upon  him  to  do ;  but, 
situated  as  he  was,  to  become  thus  a  volunteer,  to  break 
away  from  all  the  cords  and  ties  which  bound  his  heart  so 
firmly  to  his  family,  and  abandon  a  lucrative  profession  in 
which  he  held  the  very  first  place — all  these  things  prove 
the  patriotism  and  heroism  of  our  illustrious  nominee.  The 
convention  were  aware  of  these  things,  and,  as  a  proof  of 
their  gratitude,  they  nominated  him  for  the  presidency. 
The  nation,  in  November  next,  will  ratify  that  choice,  and 
elevate  him  to  the  high  place  he  so  well  deserves. 

You  may  have  seen,  perhaps,  that  some  of  the  Whig 
papers  have  recently  indulged  in  a  good  deal  of  pleasantry 
concerning  General  Pierce's  fall  from  his  horse  in  Mexico. 
I  am  sorry  to  expose  the  ignorance  of  these  writers,  but  as 
they  may  have  recurrence  to  the  same  subject  again,  it  may 
perhaps  be  as  well  to  recommend  to  them  now  to  read 
Froissart,  before  they  indite  any  more  articles  on  that  topic, 
and  they  will  find  that  the  rules  of  chivalry  required  one  of 
two  things  of  a  true  knight  before  he  could  be  admitted 
66  to  all  the  honors,"  viz.,  "  a  fall  from  his  horse,  or  to 
receive  a  wound,"  and  it  is  well  known  that,  at  the  famous 
battle  of  Cressy,  Edward  III.  refused  to  send  succors  to 


ELECTION  OF  GENERAL  PIERCE. 

the  Black  Prince  "  until  he  should  hear  he  was  wounded 
or  dismounted,"  being  determined,  as  the  historian  adds, 
"  that  he  should,  on  that  memorable  day,  have  full 
opportunity  to  win  his  spurs." 

Gentlemen,  I  will  detain  you  no  longer  upon  the  per- 
sonal qualifications  of  our  candidate  for  president.  I  fear 
I  may  have  dwelt  upon  them  too  long  already.  They 
speak  for  themselves ;  and  Shakspeare  also  says : 


-'tis  very  silly 


To  gild  refined  gold,  or  paint  the  lily. 

Of  the  qualifications  of  the  gentleman  who  is  the  nom- 
inee for  the  vice-presidency,  Colonel  W.  R.  King,  of  Ala- 
bama, it  seems  quite  a  work  of  supererogation  that  I 
should  say  a  single  word.  A  person  who  has  been  in  the 
national  councils  over  thirty  years ;  who,  as  long  ago  as 
1812,  gave  his  vote  for  Mr.  Madison's  war  ;  who  has  served 
his  country  as  ambassador  abroad  with  such  distinguished 
ability,  and  whom  the  senate  of  the  United  States,  as  if 
anticipating  the  verdict  of  the  people,  have  long  since 
chosen  to  preside  over  their  deliberations,  requires,  no 
eulogium  from  me.  With  great  force  has  Mr.  Buchanan 
said  of  him,  in  the  letter  before  mentioned,  that  "  he  is 
one  of  the  purest,  the  best,  and  most  sound-judging  states- 
men he  has  ever  known ;  a  firm,  enlightened,  unwaver- 
ing democrat,  an  amiable,  honorable,  and  benevolent  gentle- 
man." The  delegates  at  Baltimore  seized  with  avidity  the 
opportunity  afforded  them  of  testifying  their  gratitude 
and  admiration  of  one  who  had  done  so  much  for  his 
country,  and  been  always  such  a  consistent  politician  ;  and 
his  nomination  was  unanimously  agreed  upon,  as  soon  as 
his  name  was  proposed  to  the  convention.  Gentlemen,  I 
have  not  yet  mentioned  the  platform  which  was  estab- 
lished at  Baltimore,  and  yet  no  one  can  place  too  high 
a  value  upon  that  part  of  our  work.  To  have  left  it 


324  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

undone  would  have  implied,  in  my  opinion,  a  great  want 
of  firmness,  if  not  of  principle,  on  the  part  of  the  con- 
vention. I  know  how  often  it  has  been  said,  in  certain 
quarters,  that  the  Baltimore  platform  of  1848  was  wide 
enough,  large  enough,  strong  enough,  and  comprehensive 
enough ;  and  no  doubt  it  was  for  the  year  in  which  it 
was  made,  as  an  almanac  is  always  supposed  to  be  good 
for  the  year  for  which  it  was  calculated,  but  not  for 
another. 

Since  1848,  however,  certain  important  acts,  called  the 
compromise  measures,  have  been  passed  by  congress,  and 
violently  opposed  in  some  sections  of  the  country  by  per- 
sons calling  themselves  Democrats  ;  by  some  of  whom  they 
have  even  been  called  unconstitutional.  It  was  quite  nec- 
essary and  fit,  therefore,  that  the  great  Democratic  party, 
in  council  assembled,  should  declare  their  opinion  upon 
these  measures,  and  pass  the  resolves  which  were  adopted. 

On  the  first  test  in  the  committee  on  resolutions,  all 
but  four  of  the  states  came  upon  the  platform  at  once, 
and  it  was  adopted  with  a  unanimity  seldom  witnessed 
in  such  an  assembly.  We  have  now  a  rule  and  standard 
by  which  we  can  measure  any  one  who  professes  to  be  a 
Democrat,  whilst  at  the  same  time  he  is  something  else, 
and  this  has  been  wanted  by  us  all.  But  it  has  been  asserted 
by  some  persons,  that  we  require  no  platform  or  declara- 
tion of  principles  whatever.  The  founders  of  our  republic 
were  not  of  this  opinion,  when,  on  the  4th  of  July,  1776. 
they  prepared  and  adopted  that  immortal  document  called 
the  Declaration  of  American  Independence.  Not  require 
any  declaration  of  principles !  Why,  principles  make  the 
Christian ;  principles  make  the  statesman  and  patriot ; 
principles  make  the  Democrat;  principles  make  the  honest 
man ;  and  it  is  the  want  of  principles  which  makes  some  men 
what  they  are.  But  why  do  certain  persons,  calling  them- 
selves Democrats,  object  to  the  platform  of  1852,  which 


ELECTION  OF  GENERAL  PIERCE.  325 

has  been  called  the  "  Democratic  creed  ?  "  They  never 
objected  to  that  of  1848.  They  even  commend  it  now. 
Perhaps  it  forbids  some  sin  they  are  accustomed  to  com- 
mit. It  is  related  of  some  clergymen,  who  were  once  dis- 
cussing the  propriety  of  religious  creeds,  that  one  of  them 
remarked,  when  asked  his  opinion,  that  he  supposed 
"  almost  any  one  would  be  willing  to  lengthen  his  creed  if 
he  could  only  shorten  the  commandments."  Probably  the 
Democratic  creed  of  1852  'contains  some  commandment 
which  those  gentlemen  are  in  the  habit  of  violating. 

But,  gentlemen,  if  any  one  disapproves  the  platform 
established  at  Baltimore  on  the  5th  of  June,  or  refuses  to 
stand  upon  it,  be  assured  he  is  no  true  Democrat,  by  what- 
ever name  he  may  be  designated.  He  has  not  learnt  the 
first  duty  of  a  good  citizen,  obedience  to  the  laws  of  his 
country. 

Gentlemen,  I  highly  approve  the  recommendation  of 
General  Cass,  in  his  ratification  speech  at  Washington,  as 
to  the  manner  in  which  the  approaching  campaign  should 
be  conducted,  and  I  hesitate  to  say  a  single  word  concern- 
ing the  Whig  party,  because  it  is  at  present  in  such  a 
delicate  and  critical  position.  I  regret  the  division 
amongst  the  Whigs.  I  had  hoped  that  they  might  have 
met  us  on  the  second  of  November  next,  with  banners 
flying,  and  full  ranks,  that  we  might,  for  once,  have  had  a 
regular  Waterloo  day.  I  regret  that  they  should,  for  the 
third  time,  have  been  so  regardless  of  the  welfare  of  their 
country,  as  to  nominate  another  "military  chieftain"  for 
president,  which,  in  1828,  on  the  nomination  of  General 
Jackson,  they  declared  "  to  be  a  precedent,  which  augured 
the  speedy  dissolution  of  our  glorious  Union,  and  the 
extinction  of  our  liberty  and  independence."  I  regret  it, 
on  another  account,  because  for  the  sake  of  the  friends  of 
Mr.  Webster,  if  not  on  his  own  account,  I  had  hoped  he 
might  have  received  the  Whig  nomination  at  Baltimore  ; 


326  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

he  who  has  defended  so  nobly  the  Union,  as  to  have 
acquired  and  merited,  too,  the  name  of  its  champion; 
whose  fame  has  become  the  property  of  the  nation,  and 
who  has  displayed  such  amazing  talents  in  the  forum,  in 
the  senate,  and,  indeed,  in  every  station  which  he  has 
been  called  upon  to  fill,  that  we  hear  him  daily  spoken 
of  as  the  greatest  statesman  of  the  age.  I  knew  the 
Whigs  owed  him  a  debt  of  gratitude  so  vast  they  never 
could  pay  him  if  they  would,  but  until  recently  I  never 
even  suspected  they  would  not  if  they  could. 

Before  I  sit  down,  I  would  make  a  special  appeal  to  my 
brother  farmers,  who  have  favored  us  with  their  company 
to-day,  and  also  to  those  who  may  have  been  prevented 
from  coming,  and  I  would  bespeak  their  aid  and  assistance 
in  the  coming  contest ;  for  I  feel  that  without  them,  little 
would  be  accomplished.  I  fear  we  do  not  realize  as  we 
should  how  much  we  are  indebted  to  them,  and  how 
much  we  depend  on  the  honest  labor  of  their  hands. 

Truly  has  the  poet  said  of  them — 

«« Princes  and  lords  may  flourish  or  may  fade, 
A  breath  can  make  them,  as  a  breath  has  made  ; 
But  a  bold  yeomanry,  their  country's  pride, 
When  once  destroyed,  can  never  be  supplied." 

When  I  reflect  upon  their  vast  number  and  great 
strength,  though  they  are  so  still  and  quiet,  and  compare 
them  with  our  politicians,  who,  though  really  small  in 
number,  are  so  boisterous  and  noisy,  I  am  reminded  of  a 
comparison  of  Mr.  Burke's,  when  speaking  of  some  agita- 
tors in  England,  during  the  French  revolution,  he  said, 
"  Because  half  a  dozen  grasshoppers  under  a  fern,  make  a 
whole  field  ring  with  their  importunate  clink,  whilst  hun- 
dreds of  noble  cattle,  under  the  British  oak,  chew  the  cud 
and  are  silent,  we  must  not  suppose  they  are  the  only 
tenants  of  the  field." 


ELECTION  OF  GENERAL  PIERCE. 

If  you,  brother  farmers,  will,  on  the  second  of  November 
next,  promise  me  to  give  the  long  pull,  the  strong  pull, 
and  the  pull  altogether,  our  success,  I  think,  may  be 
considered  as  certain. 

Well,  then,  fellow-citizens  and  fellow-townsmen  of  the 
eighth  district,  whom  I  am  happy  to  meet  in  such  num- 
bers on  this  occasion,  we  behold  the  campaign  fairly  opened, 
and  we  have  chosen  for  our  standard-bearers  Pierce  and 
King;  and  let  me  ask  you, 'could  the  choice  have  fallen 
on  two  statesmen  and  patriots  more  worthy  of  our  confi- 
dence, or  who  would  carry  it  higher  ?  Who  w^ould  hesi- 
tate to  enlist  under  such  a  flag  ?  On  it  are  inscribed, 
"  The  Constitution,  Union,  Liberty,  Independence." 

We  have  opposed  to  us,  General  Scott  and  Mr.  Graham. 
The  former,  we  are  told,  u  was  never  beaten  ; "  and  I  may 
add,  that  our  champion,  too,  was  never  beaten,  and,  in  my 
opinion,  never  will  be. 

In  the  same  way  you  may  remember  they  had  a  war- 
rior amongst  the  ancient  Greeks,  Achilles,  the  bravest  of 
them  all,  who  was  declared  "  invulnerable,"  and  Yulcan 
made  for  him  a  suit  of  armor  which  nothing  could  pierce ; 
but  this  proved  to  be  a  mistake,  for  when  Thetis  plunged 
him  into  the  river  Styx,  she  held  him  by  the  heel,  which 
failed  to  acquire  this  quality  of  invulnerability,  and  he 
was  afterwards  killed  by  Paris,  whilst  he  was  soliciting 
the  hand  of  a  lady  in  the  temple  of  Minerva. 

Who  knows,  gentlemen,  that  General  Scott  has  not 
some  place  about  him,  in  the  heel  or  somewhere  behind, 
which  is  also  vulnerable  ?  for  we  all  remember  what  a 
dread  he  has  always  had  "  of  being  taken  in  the  rear." 

But  let  him  engage  in  combat  with  our  champion  when 
he  will,  I  predict  he  will  find  out  the  unguarded  place,  if 
he  has  one,  and  that  the  hero  of  Lundy's  Lane  will  not 
have  the  good  fortune  to  escape,  as  he  did  at  Queenstown, 
with  being  only  taken  prisoner. 


328  WORKS  OF  S.  D  BRADFORD. 

I  thank  you  profoundly,  gentlemen,  for  the  kind  and 
flattering  attention  with  which  you  have  listened  to  me. 
I  could  not  even  hope  to  reward  your  attention,  by  relat- 
ing anything  new,  after  the  full,  accurate,  and  highly 
graphic  account  of  the  proceedings  at  Baltimore,  by  the 
Hon.  Mr.  Halle t,  published  a  few  days  since,  and  who,  I 
had  hoped,  would  have  been  present  here  to-day.  As 
regards  that  convention,  he  could  truly  say  not  "quorum 
pars  magna  fui?  but  "  quorum  pars  maxima  fid?  and  well 
has  he  described  the  proceedings.  Once  more,  gentlemen, 
accept  the  tender  of  my  sincere  thanks,  and  in  due  time 
may  we  all  meet  here  again  to  ratify,  confirm,  and  cele- 
brate, not  the  nomination,  but  the  election,  of  Pierce  and 
King! 


HON.   DAVID   HENSHAW. 

THE  great  heart  of  the  nation  has  not  ceased  to  throb 
from  the  severe  and  sudden  shock  it  received  from  the 
death  of  the  exalted  leader  of  the  Whig  party,  Mr.  Web- 
ster, when  it  is  violently  agitated  and  grieved  again  by 
the  announcement  that  the  great,  the  good,  and  the  dis- 
tinguished leader  of  the  Democratic  party,  David  Hen- 
shaw,  is  also  numbered  with  the  dead  !  The  tears  of  the 
nation  for  the  loss  of  the  former  are  not  yet  dry ;  the 
habiliments  of  mourning,  with  which  our  public  and  many 
of  our  private  buildings  were  shrouded,  have  not  been 
removed,  when  we  are  called  upon  to  shed  fresh  tears 
over  the  tomb  of  another  patriot  and  statesman,  no 
less  venerated  and  beloved.  It  was  only  yesterday  that 
the  papers  announced  that  the  Hon.  David  Henshaw  died 
on  the  llth  instant,  at  Leicester,  his  native  place,  at  the 
age  of  sixty-one  years,  having  been  born  on  the  2dof  April, 
1791;  admired,  beloved,  and  revered  by  all  who  knew  him. 
Like  the  illustrious  defender  of  the  constitution,  he  died 
in  the  town  and  upon  the  spot  which  he  had  chosen  as  the 
place  of  his  retreat,  upon  his  retirement  from  the  more 
active  duties  of  life,  and  surrounded  by  those  relatives  and 
friends  who  were  so  dear  to  him  whilst  living,  and  who 
will  never  cease  to  venerate  his  memory  now  that  he  is 
dead.  A  distinguished  statesman,  General  Pierce,  in  giving 
utterance  to  his  grief  upon  the  decease  of  Mr.  Webster,  after 
mentioning  the  great  men  who  have  recently  been  called  to 
"  pass  through  the  dark  valley  " — Wright,  Woodbury,  Cal- 

42 


330  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

houn,  and  Clay — has  feelingly  asked, "  who  are  to  take  their 
places  in  the  perils  through  which  our  country  may  be  called 
to  pass  ?  "  In  the  same  spirit  would  we  inquire  who,  in 
future,  is  to  counsel  and  guide  the  Democratic  party  in 
Massachusetts  ?  In  whom  can  they  confide  at  all  times 
of  difficulty  or  danger  as  in  him  whose  loss  we  are  called 
upon  to  deplore  ? 

Should  any  one  hereafter  attempt  to  write  his  life,  it 
would  involve  the  history  of  the  party  for  the  last  twenty- 
five  years ;  for  no  important  movement  has  been  made 
without  his  concurrence,  and  the  most  important  measures 
which  have  been  adopted  were  many  of  them  suggested 
by  him.  General  Jackson,  at  an  early  period,  discovered 
the  incorruptible  integrity,  fidelity,  and  talents,  which  dis- 
tinguished him,  and  appointed  him  collector  of  Boston  and 
Charlestown — a  post  he  held  for  so  many  years  with  such 
honor  to  himself,  and  such  universal  approbation  on  the 
part  of  the  merchants  of  both  political  parties.  Indeed, 
his  administration  of  that  office  is  often  spoken  of  now, 
after  a  lapse  of  so  many  years,  as  a  model  for  imitation. 

By  President  Tyler  he  was  appointed  secretary  of  the 
navy,  which  place,  however,  he  did  not  hold  long,  on 
account  of  a  combination  of  circumstances  existing  at  the 
time,  such  as,  it  is  believed,  never  existed  before,  and,  it  is 
hoped,  for  the  honor  of  the  nation,  will  never  exist  again  ; 
but  he  held  it  long  enough  to  display  a  skill  and  an  admin- 
istrative capacity  such  as  astonished  persons  who  were 
strangers  to  Mr.  Henshaw,  but  which  only  confirmed  the 
predictions  of  his  friends.  It  is  scarcely  a  week  since 
meeting,  in  the  street  in  Boston,  a  venerable  and  distin- 
guished officer  of  the  navy,  he  remarked,  whilst  speaking 
of  Mr.  Henshaw,  "  We  never  had  such  an  admirable  sec- 
retary before,  and  I  doubt  if  we  ever  shall  have  again  ;  " 
and  this  was  the  opinion  of  the  whole  nation. 

Convinced,  early  in  life,  of  the  truth  of  democratic  prin- 


CHARACTER  OF  DAVID  HENSHAW.  331 

ciples,  he  advocated  them  fearlessly,  and  with  an  ability 
seldom  equalled.  Although  not  educated  for  any  of  the 
learned  professions,  so  called,  there  was  no  question  of 
morals,  jurisprudence,  or  equity,  which  he  shrank  from 
discussing,  and  with  an  ability  seldom  if  ever  surpassed. 
Upon  several  occasions,  he  wrote  upon  some  of  the  most 
intricate  and  difficult  questions  which  can  exercise  the 
understanding.  The  points  he  attempted  to  establish  on 
political  questions  were  almost  always  opposed  to  the  opin- 
ions generally  received  in  Boston  ;  but  few,  if  any,  persons 
ever  ventured  to  reply ;  and  it  is  not  remembered  that  he 
ever  had  occasion  to  resort  to  a  rejoinder. 

He  had  a  great  original  mind,  formed  and  adapted  to 
consider  and  weigh  questions  of  mighty  import ;  and  it  is 
not  doubted  that,  had  he  been  educated  for  the  bar,  he 
would  have  left  a  name  second  to  none  in  the  brilliant 
galaxy  of  American  jurists.  He  was  a  diligent  reader ; 
but,  what  is  far  more  uncommon,  he  was  a  profound 
thinker  also,  and  was  never  satisfied  with  any  present 
attainments.  His  books  were  his  great  solace  under  the 
pain  and  confinement  of  the  complaint  (the  gout)  with 
which  he  was  so  seriously  afflicted  for  so  many  years, 
and  which  he  endured  with  a  patience  and  resignation 
which  excited  the  admiration  of  all  his  friends. 

Of  his  patriotism,  it  is  impossible  to  speak  in  terms  of 
too  exalted  praise.  He  thought  no  sacrifice  too  great  to 
promote  the  glory,  the  prosperity,  and  the  happiness  of  his 
country,  and  he  took  a  deep  interest  in  all  the  great 
public  measures  of  the  last  twenty-five  years.  He  was 
an  uncompromising  defender  of  the  principles  of  Jeffer- 
son, Jackson,  and  of  the  other  fathers  of  our  republic,  at 
a  time  when  a  defender  of  these  measures  required  some 
courage,  patience,  and  Christian  fortitude.  He  never 
waited  to  see  whether  a  great  public  measure  would 
probably  be  popular  or  otherwise ;  but,  if  he  approved 


332  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

it,  and  believed  it  would  promote  the  good  of  the  coun- 
try, he  advocated  it  without  fear  or  hesitation.  He  sus- 
tained two  administrations  in  their  refusal  to  re-charter  the 
United  States  Bank.  He  advocated  powerfully  the  sub- 
treasury  system,  at  one  time  so  denounced  as  pernicious 
if  not  impracticable,  but  now  admitted,  by  both  political 
parties,  as  a  wise  and  salutary  regulation,  and  as  the  guard- 
ian and  preserver  of  our  moneyed  institutions,  instead  of 
their  destroyer.  Free  trade  found  in  him  a  most  constant 
and  able  advocate  and  defender;  but,  at  the  same  time, 
no  one  took  a  livelier  interest  in  the  prosperity  of  our 
home  manufactures,  which,  however,  he  believed,  would 
be  injured  rather  than  benefited,  by  high  protective  duties. 
In  his  devotion  to  the  Union,  which  he  considered  always 
as  the  foundation  stone  of  our  greatness  and  happiness  as 
a  nation,  he  was  second  to  none,  and  availed  himself  of 
every  proper  occasion  to  impress  a  love  of  it  upon  the 
hearts  of  the  people. 

To  say  that  such  a  man  was  permitted  to  remain  at  all 
in  private  life,  and  that  the  people  of  his  native  state  did 
not  invite  and  urge  him  at  all  times  to  accept  the  highest 
and  most  important  offices  in  their  gift,  is  only  to  admit 
that  the  people  do  not  always  reward  great  talents  and 
exemplary  public  and  private  worth  as  they  deserve. 
Office,  however,  could  confer  no  real  distinction  on  such 
a  man,  although  the  public  service  may  be  greatly  injured 
by  being  entrusted  to  less  able  and  deserving  hands. 

There  was  no  situation,  however  high,  not  even  the 
highest,  to  which  Mr.  Henshaw  would  not  have  brought 
talents,  zeal,  and  ability,  equal  to  any  emergency  which 
could  have  arisen.  No  subject,  however  difficult  or 
abstruse,  seemed  too  high  for  his  comprehension ;  and  he 
possessed  a  power  of  investigation  and  analysis  such  as 
falls  to  the  lot  of  very  few  persons. 

To    describe   the   domestic   life    and  character  of  our 


CHARACTER  OF  DAVID  HENSHAW.  333 

departed  friend  would  be  to  present  a  portrait  of  all  the 
virtues  which  are  most  esteemed  amongst  men.  The  good- 
ness of  his  heart  was  as  great  as  the  power  of  his  under- 
standing. Benevolent  to  a  degree  seldom  witnessed,  he 
was  never  so  happy  as  when  he  could  do  a  kindness  to 
another.  Hospitable  in  the  largest  sense  of  the  word,  he 
was  always  gratified  when  he  could  receive  and  entertain 
strangers  or  friends.  He  had  a  wise  and  sensible  appre- 
ciation of  money,  avoiding  equally  avarice  and  prodigal- 
ity, and  this  is  no  small  praise;  for,  as  a  distinguished 
English  author  has  said,  "  a  right  measure  and  manner  in 
getting,  saving,  spending,  giving,  taking,  lending,  borrow- 
ing, and  bequeathing,  would  almost  argue  a  perfect  man." 
In  all  these  respects,  the  example  of  Mr.  Henshaw  was 
one  to  be  imitated  and  followed. 

But  it  has  pleased  our  heavenly  Father  to  call  him  out 
of  this  world,  and  we  shall  no  more  look  upon  his  noble 
and  benevolent  countenance.  A  few  short  weeks  only 
have  elapsed  since  he  returned  from  Europe,  where  he 
had  been  passing  two  or  three  months  for  the  benefit  of 
his  health ;  and  it  was  our  happiness  to  congratulate  him 
on  the  improvement  wrhich  had  taken  place,  and  which 
filled  us  with  the  hope  that  he  might  live  many  years 
Little  did  we  anticipate  that,  when  he  left  Boston  for 
Leicester,  it  was  to  be  for  the  last  time.  If,  however,  the 
decree  had  gone  forth  that  he  was  to  die  so  soon,  it  is 
some  consolation  to  reflect  that  he  died  where  he  did, 
upon  the  site  of  that  old  Indian  fort  upon  his  paternal 
estate,  in  the  arms  of  his  nearest  and  dearest  relatives ; 
and  in  the  vicinity  of  those  respected  neighbors  and  friends 
who  valued  him  so  highly,  and  who  now  so  deeply  lament 
his  ]oss.  At  one  time,  we  had  great  fears  he  might  pass 
away  in  a  foreign  land,  in  the  midst  of  strangers.  We 
may,  therefore,  apply  to  him  the  words  of  Tacitus,  in 
lamenting  the  death  of  his  father-in-law,  the  distinguished 


334  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

Roman  general,  Agricola  :  "  Tu  vero  felix,  non  vitce  tantum 
claritate,  sed  etiam  opportimitate  mortis.  Admiratione  te  potius, 
temporalibus  laudibus,  et,  si  natura  suppeditet,  simitudine  decore- 


FUNERAL  OF  HON.  DAVID  HENSHAW. 

LEICESTER,  Nov.  16th,  1852. 

Having  seen  in  your  paper  the  obituary  notices  of  the 
great  statesman  and  philanthropist,  David  Henshaw,  whose 
death  we  have  so  recently  been  called  upon  to  mourn, 
your  readers,  or,  at  any  rate,  some  of  them,  may,  perhaps, 
feel  an  interest  in  reading  a  brief  account  of  his  funeral, 
which  took  place  to-day  in  this,  his  native  town.  It  was 
an  occasion  which  has  made  a  deep  impression  upon  the 
minds  of  all  present,  and  which  will  be  long  remembered. 

The  directors  of  the  Worcester  railway,  with  which  Mr. 
Henshaw  was  connected  for  so  many  years,  and  of  which 
it  may  in  fact  be  said,  he  was  one  of  the  principal  found- 
ers, seized  the  opportunity  to  place  a  special  train  at  the 
service  of  such  persons  in  Boston  and  its  vicinity,  as  might 
desire  to  pay  the  homage  of  their  respect  to  the  memory 
of  the  deceased ;  and  Mr.  Twitchell,  the  attentive  and 
courteous  superintendent,  accompanied  the  train  to  Wor- 
cester, and  then  proceeded  to  Leicester  in  one  of  the 
numerous  carriages  which  had  been  ordered  for  the  occa- 
sion. The  directors  of  the  company  also  attended  the 
funeral,  and  the  arrangements  were  all  well  made,  and 
executed  in  the  most  prompt  and  most  effectual  manner. 

The  engine  employed,  said  to  be  the  most  powerful  one 
on  the  line,  was  called  David  Henshaw,  and  was  draped 
with  the  habiliments  of  mourning.  The  train  left  Boston 
at  half  past  eight  o'clock,  A.  M.  On  reaching  Framing- 
ham,  half  way,  it  was  joined  by  several  families,  who  had 


FUNERAL  OF  DAVID  HENSHAW.  335 

been  waiting  its  arrival  there ;  and  on  reaching  the 
terminus  at  Worcester,  at  ten  o'clock,  it  was  almost  sur- 
rounded by  the  carriages  which  had  been  ordered  to  con- 
vey the  passengers  to  the  late  residence  of  the  deceased, 
distant  about  six  miles.  The  morning  was  bright,  clear, 
and  cold ;  the  ground  under  the  trees  by  the  roadside  was 
strewed  with  fading  or  dead  leaves,  so  emblematic  of  the 
season  of  the  year;  and  the  funeral  cortege,  on  being 
formed  in  a  long,  straight  'line,  presented  a  sight  most 
imposing,  and  such  as  is  not  often  seen  in  this  part  of  the 
country. 

The  gathering  about  the  terminus,  the  array  of  vehicles, 
the  quiet,  dejected  aspect  of  the  people — everything  indi- 
cated that  some  important  but  painful  occurence  had  taken 
place. 

On  arrival  at  the  late  residence  of  Mr.  Henshaw,  almost 
the  first  object  seen  was  the  metallic  case  or  coffin  contain- 
ing his  body,  placed  upon  a  support  upon  the  lawn,  oppo- 
site the  principal  entrance  to  the  house,  as  was  done  at  the 
funeral  of  Mr.  Webster,  at  Marshfield ;  and  there  the  com- 
pany had  an  opportunity  of  gazing,  for  the  last  time,  upon 
the  mild  and  benevolent  countenance  of  their  departed 
friend.  It  was  as  placid,  composed,  and  peaceful,  as  if  he 
had  only  just  fallen  asleep.  A  procession  was  soon  formed, 
and  moved  in  the  direction  of  the  church,  distant  about  a 
mile.  As  it  passed  over  the  hills  and  through  the  valleys 
of  this  beautiful  town,  not  a  person  was  seen  at  work  in 
the  fields ;  the  plough  was  laid  aside ;  the  sound  of  the 
anvil  was  nowhere  to  be  heard ;  the  shops  were  closed, 
and  hung  with  black,  and  on  reaching  the  church  it  was 
shrouded  in  mourning.  In  a  few  minutes  it  was  filled  to 
overflowing,  and  the  solemn  religious  services  commenced, 
being  performed  by  the  Rev.  Dr.  Nelson,  assisted  by  his 
colleague,  Rev.  Mr.  Dennison.  They  consisted  of  two 
prayers,  the  singing  of  the  two  hymns,  commencing  "  God 


336  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

moves  in  a  mysterious  way/'  and  "  Whilst  Thee  I  seek, 
protecting  Power,"  and  a  short,  but  appropriate  eulogy  upon 
the  life  and  qualities  of  the  deceased,  by  the  Rev.  Dr.  Nel- 
son, in  which  he  spoke  of  the  most  salient  points  in  the 
character  of  Mr.  Henshaw ;  his  incorruptible  integrity ;  his 
indomitable  energy;  his  untiring  industry;  of  the  able 
manner  in  which  he  filled  so  many  important  places ;  of 
his  unwearied  exertions  in  the  introduction,  progress,  and 
perfection  of  railways,  and  of  his  unbounded  charity  and 
benevolence.  He  alluded  to  the  recent  death  of  the  other 
distinguished  statesmen,  Calhoun,  Clay,  and  Webster,  and 
said  that  we  must  now  add  that  of  David  Henshaw,  which 
proved  that 

"Death  loves  a  shining  marl^." 

The  speaker  was  evidently  aware  of  the  irreparable  loss 
sustained  by  the  town,  by  the  state,  and  by  the  nation ;  but 
yet  it  might  not  be  quite  true  to  say  that  he  compre- 
hended fully  the  genius  and  mental  powers  of  Mr.  Hen- 
shaw, in  all  their  grandeur  and  extent ;  and  possibly  this 
arose  from  the  very  circumstance  of  his  nearness  to  him ; 
as  great  men,  like  lofty  mountains,  require  to  be  viewed 
from  a  distance,  fully  to  comprehend  their  vast  majesty 
and  height.  The  mind  of  Mr.  Henshaw  was  like  the  won- 
derful productions  of  some  of  the  old  masters  in  painting, 
which,  every  time  you  look  at  them,  display  some  new 
beauty  and  power.  Like  an  autumnal  landscape,  as  the 
sun  strikes  upon  it  first,  in  its  full  effulgence,  and  then, 
after  passing  through  a  cloud,  some  new  phase  of  beauty 
and  variety  is  every  moment  presented  to  the  view.  Dr. 
Nelson  spoke  also  of  the  great  antiquity,  as  well  as  of  the 
elevated  character  of  Mr.  Henshaw's  ancestry,  (higher 
even  than  any  one  suspected  until  reference  had  been 
had  to  the  Herald's  College  in  London,  by  a  relative,)  and 
of  the  important  part  they  acted  in  the  early  history  of 


FUNERAL  OF  DAVID  HENSHAW.  337 

New  England ;  and  he  stated  that,  although  Mr.  Henshaw 
was  one  of  nine  brothers  and  sisters,  the  circle  had  never 
before  been  broken  by  death  since  1801,  a  period  of  over 
half  a  century,  a  circumstance  which  he  believed  to  be 
almost  without  a  parallel. 

He  made  some  very  pertinent  and  useful  remarks  on 
the  manner  in  which  the  deceased  passed  his  evenings 
when  an  apprentice  in  Boston ;  reading  and  studying  use- 
ful books,  instead  of  wasting  the  seed-time  of  life,  and  he 
expressed  a  hope  that  his  example  might  be  followed  by 
the  young  men  of  the  present  day.  He  did  not  speak,  but 
others  have  spoken,  of  his  great  love  of  children,  of  his 
delight  in  the  society  of  intelligent  and  educated  ladies, 
and  of  his  kindness  in  aiding  so  many  young  men  by  his 
useful  counsels,  and  in  other  ways ;  services  which  no  one 
perhaps  has  rendered  more  freely ;  and  to  which  so  many 
persons  are  ready  to  bear  witness. 

Such  is  a  brief  outline  of  the  character  of  this  great  man, 
as  portrayed  by  Dr.  Nelson,  and  "  0  !  how  devoutly  to  be 
wished  it  is"  that  all  our  distinguished  public  men  were  like 
Mr.  Henshaw,  morally  virtuous  and  good  as  well  as  intellect- 
ually great ;  that  they  could  feel  and  realize  that  a  country 
can  be  progressive  without,  at  the  same  time,  becoming 
aggressive ;  that  fidelity  to  treaties,  to  truth,  justice,  and  the 
laws  of  God,  is  the  best  and  only  foundation  on  which  the 
liberties  of  a  nation  can  permanently  rest ;  and  that  even 
the  suspicion  that  a  nation  would  take  by  violence  the  prop- 
erty of  another,  especially  should  it  be  a  weaker  power, 
must  tarnish  its  reputation,  and  effectually  destroy  its 
moral  influence  forever !  Let  all  our  public  men  adhere 
to  principle,  and  "  do  justly."  Then  may  ours  indeed  be 
called,  with  truth, "  the  model  republic,"  and  we  may  expect 
soon  to  realize  the  beautiful  vision  of  the  Hon.  R.  J. 
Walker,  in  his  recent  letter  to  Arthur  Davies,  Esq.,  of 
London,  in  having  K  our  confederacy  embrace  the  whole 

43 


338  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

earth,  with  one  untaxed  and  unrestricted  commerce,  one 
language,  and  one  Christianity,  all  enlightened,  educated, 
and  trained  in  moral,  scientific,  political,  and  religious  cul- 
ture—each state,  as  under  our  Union,  taking  charge  of  its 
own  local  concerns,  and  the  general  government  exercis- 
ing but  few  powers  under  specific  provisions.  Such  a  gov- 
ernment would  present  incalculable  advantages  for  the 
advancement  of  the  human  race." 

But  to  return  to  the  obsequies.  The  services  in 
the  church  having  been  concluded,  the  procession  was 
again  formed,  and  followed  the  body,  which  had  been 
replaced  upon  the  hearse,  to  the  new  cemetery  called 
the  Pine  Grove,  where  it  was  deposited  in  the  receiv- 
ing tomb,  from  which  it  will  be  removed  to-morrow 
to  the  family  tomb  in  the  burial-ground  of  Leicester, 
from  which,  in  due  time,  it  will  be  taken  to  a  new 
tomb  about  to  be  constructed  by  the  surviving  relatives  of 
Mr.  Henshaw,  in  the  Pine  Grove  Cemetery,  whose  beauti- 
ful grounds  are  being  laid  out  like  those  of  Mount  Auburn 
or  Forest  Hill,  near  Boston. 

Mr.  Henshaw's  farm  consists  of  about  three  hundred 
acres,  and  the  land,  in  general,  is  of  excellent  quality. 
Amongst  the  persons  present  were  His  Excellency  Gov- 
ernor Boutwell,  Hon.  Albert  Smith,  of  Maine,  Hon.  B.  F. 
Hallett,  Hon.  Isaac  Emery,  Major  Grafton,  several  members 
of  the  governor's  council,  and  many  others  too  numerous 
to  mention.  The  pall-bearers  were  eight  neighbors  of  Mr. 
Henshaw,  all  belonging  to  Leicester.  »  v 

Thus  ended  a  day  which  will  be  long  remembered  in 
Leicester,  as  that  devoted  to  the  funeral  of  its  most  beloved, 
most  liberal,  and  most  distinguished  citizen  ;  a  statesman, 
philanthropist,  and  patriot,  such  as  would  do  honor  to  any 
town,  or  any  country.  It  remains  to  be  seen  if  the  Demo- 
crats, no,  not  the  Democrats,  (for  Mr.  Henshaw,  like  Mr. 
Webster,  cannot  be  said  to  have  belonged  to  any  party, 


FUNERAL  OF  DAVID  HENSHAW.  339 

but  to  the  nation,)  but  the  Whigs,  and,  in  short,  all  who 
love  their  country  and  the  Union,  will  be  content  to  rest 
here.  Mr.  Henshaw  was  eminently  the  friend  of  the 
laborer  and  the  poor ;  and,  should  an  appeal  be  made  to  the 
masses,  as  was  done  in  England,  when  she  lost  that  great 
and  good  man,  Sir  Robert  Peel,  it  could  not  fail  to  be  fol- 
lowed by  a  like  result ;  for  the  masses  never  desert  such  a 
man,  and  are  always  true  to  his  memory ;  and  if  this  be 
the  monumental  age,  and  i£  great  excellences  and  distin- 
guished public  services  are  to  be  marked  and  commemo- 
rated by  marble,  granite,  or  bronze,  let  it  be  remembered 
that,  amongst  the  arches  or  columns  to  be  erected, 
David  Henshaw,  the  originator  of  the  printed  vote,  merits, 
and  ought  to  have,  one  of  the  tallest  and  most  magnifi- 
cent. 

"  PLORATOR." 
To  the  Editors  of  the  Boston  Post. 


CHARACTER  OF  MRS.  SUSANNAH 
BILLINGS. 

DIED,  in  West  Roxbury,  on  Saturday,  the  second  of 
April,  1853,  Susannah  Billings,  aged  eighty-two  years. 

It  was  an  observation  of  that  great  man,  Lord  Bacon, 
"  I  have  often  thought  of  death,  and  I  find  it  the  least  of 
all  evils."  And  so  might  any  one  say,  whose  life  had 
been  beautiful  and  blameless,  like  that  of  our  departed 
friend,  whose  loss  we  have  so  recently  had  occasion  to 
deplore.  A  character  so  adorned  with  all  the  Christian 
graces  is  not  often  found.  It  is  pleasant,  as  well  as  useful, 
to  dwell  for  a  moment  upon  such  an  example. 

Mrs.  Billings  belonged  to  an  ancient  and  most  respecta- 
ble family  of  Roxbury,  consisting  of  four  sons  and  seven 
daughters,  all  of  whom  are  now  deceased,  except  one. 
The  last  brother,  who  died  but  a  short  time  since,  was  Daniel 
Weld,  for  so  many  years  a  devoted  member  of  Hollis 
Street  Church  in  Boston,  and  upon  whose  life  and  charac- 
ter the  Rev.  Thomas  Starr  King  pronounced  a  warm,  but 
well  deserved  eulogy,  on  the  ninteenth  of  September  last, 
which  was  published.  The  brothers  were  all  distinguished 
for  enterprise,  industry,  and  the  strictest  integrity ;  and 
the  sisters  for  those  social,  amiable,  and  domestic  qualities 
which  endear  the  wife  and  mother,  and  render  home  what 
it  always  should  be.  Their  devotion  to  the  cause  of  relig- 
ion was  constant  and  unwavering ;  and  "  their  good  works 
were  known  unto  all  men." 

The  object  of  this  notice  was  singularly  endowed  with 


CHARACTER  OF  SUSANNAH  BILLINGS.  341 

all  those  Christian  virtues,  which  inspire  us  with  love  and 
admiration.  United  early  in  life  to  one  who  was  a  model 
of  everything  which  is  excellent  and  praise-worthy  in  the 
human  character,  and  blessed  with  children  affectionate  as 
they  were  dutiful,  almost  the  first  affliction  which  arrested 
the  even  course  of  her  happiness,  was  occasioned  by  the 
death  of  her  esteemed  and  beloved  consort,  who  died  on 
the  twentieth  of  August,  1829,  at  the  age  of  sixty-four 
years.  This  must  always  be  a  bereavement  of  the  most 
painful  character  to  a  loving  and  affectionate  wife ;  and 
life  can  never  be  again  what  it  was  before.  Then,  more 
than  ever,  is  she  dependent  upon  the  sympathy,  kindness, 
and  devotion  of  her  children.  In  this  respect,  Mrs.  Bil- 
lings was  truly  blessed ;  and  if,  from  her  happy  abode  in 
heaven,  she  be  cognizant  of  what  is  passing  upon  earth, 
we  may  easily  imagine  her  saying,  to  each  of  her  children, 

Ah!  weep  not — it  shall  be 

An  after  thought  to  cheer  thee, 
That  while  mine  eyes  could  see, 

And  while  mine  ears  could  hear  thee — 

Thy  voice  and  smile  were  still 

The  spells  on  which  I  doated, 
And  thou,  through  good  and  ill, 

To  me  and  mine  devoted. 

It  would  be  grateful  to  specify  and  dwell  upon  the 
various  excellences  which  marked  the  character  of  the 
deceased;  but  to  such  as  enjoyed  the  privilege  of  her 
acquaintance  it  is  unnecessary,  as  they  are  engraved 
already  too  deeply  upon  the  memory  ever  to  be  effaced. 
Benevolence,  or  a  desire  to  make  others  happy,  was  the 
predominant  sentiment  which  directed  and  controlled  all 
her  actions. 

Few  persons  were  so  free  from  selfishness.  Her  gener- 
osity had  not  the  irregularity  or  impetuosity  of  the  tor- 
rent, but,  like  some  gentle  fountain,  was  never  failing,  and 
always  equable  in  its  course.  The  kindness  of  her  heart 


WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

was  such  as  to  be  ever  moved  by  a  tale  of  suffering  and 
distress,  and  she  always  relieved  it  when  she  could.  She 
was  a  kind  neighbor  and  a  faithful  friend.  So  unfailing 
was  she  in  performing  all  the  duties  of  her  station,  that 
her  example  diffused  a  wholesome  influence  upon  all 
around  her.  Her  approbation  was  esteemed  a  test  of 
worthiness  and  good  conduct.  The  young  looked  up  to 
and  reverenced  her.  The  middle-aged  could  conceive  of 
nothing  more  beautiful  than  an  old  age  like  hers.  In  her 
religion  she  was  full  of  faith;  and  she  trusted  implicitly  in 
the  promises  of  the  Savior,  which  were  her  best  solace  in 
all  the  trials  of  life ;  but  she  was  liberal  towards  those 
who  entertained  different  sentiments  from  her  own,  and 
believed  in  the  efficacy  and  indispensable  necessity  of 
good  works,  without  which  she  conceived  there  could  be 
no  true  discipleship.  She  was  a  communicant  of  the 
church,  and  so  long  as  her  health  permitted,  was  a  con- 
stant and  devout  attendant  upon  the  ministrations  of  the 
sanctuary.  Nothing  could  exceed  the  interest  she  took 
in  the  parish  to  which  she  belonged,  or  her  kindness  and 
consideration  for  the  ministers,  who,  during  her  protracted 
residence  in  Roxbury,  were  her  spiritual  guides.  If  the 
fathers  live  no  longer  to  testify  to  this,  yet  some  of  their 
children  survive: 

"  And  the  tear  that  they  shed,  though  in  secret  it  rolls, 
Shall  long  keep  her  memory  green  in  their  souls." 

We  might  speak  also  of  her  fine  person,  (the  beauty 
and  comeliness  of  which  even  extreme  old  age  had  but 
little  impaired,)  and  of  her  benignant  and  pleasant  coun- 
tenance, which  was  a  true  index  of  her  mind. 

The  closing  scene  of  the  life  we  have  so  imperfectly 
described,  was  worthy  of  its  previous  stages.  Although 
her  last  illness  continued  for  a  month,  during  part  of  which 
time  her  sufferings  were  intense,  arising  from  that  severe 


CHARACTER  OF  SUSANNAH  BILLINGS.  343 

and  painful  complaint,  inflammatory  rheumatism,  not  a 
word  of  impatience  or  complaint  escaped  her  lips.  Instead 
of  saying,  "  How  long  wilt  thou  forget  me,  oh  Lord?"  her 
ejaculations  were,  "I  will  love  thee,  0  Lord,  my  strength." 
"The  Lord  is  my  rock,  and  my  fortress, and  my  deliverer." 
"  A  father  of  the  fatherless,  and  a  judge  of  the  widows,  is 
God  in  his  holy  habitation." 

A  part  of  the  time  it  appeared  as  if  her  thoughts  were 
wholly  withdrawn  from  earth,  and  rested  amongst  the 
blessed  spirits  of  heaven;  and  she  seemed  listening  to 
those  beautiful  words  in  Revelation,  "And  he  said  to  me, 
These  are  they  which  came  out  of  great  tribulation,  and 
have  washed  their  robes,  and  made  them  wrhite  in  the 
blood  of  the  Lamb.  Therefore  are  they  before  the  throne 
of  God,  and  serve  him  day  and  night  in  his  temple;  and 
he  that  sitteth  on  the  throne  shall  dwell  among  them. 
They  shall  hunger  no  more,  neither  thirst  any  more ; 
neither  shall  the  sun  light  on  them,  nor  any  heat.  For 
the  Lamb,  which  is  in  the  midst  of  the  throne,  shall  feed 
them,  and  shall  lead  them  unto  living  fountains  of  waters, 
and  God  shall  wipe  away  all  tears  from  their  eyes." 

Many  days  previous  to  her  decease,  she  had  taken  an 
affectionate  and  most  affecting  leave  of  her  children  and 
her  grand-children,  like  one  about  to  commence  a  long 
journey;  and  she  died  surrounded  by  the  former,  upon 
the  arm  of  one  of  whom  she  rested  at  the  moment  of 
death.  She  had  been  her  staff  and  constant  attendant  in 
life,  and  became  her  support  when  her  spirit  took  its  flight 
to  God  who  gave  it. 

It  may  be  deemed  perhaps  superfluous  to  add,  that  by 
the  decease  of  one  of  such  uncommon  excellence  and 
worth,  her  relatives  and  friends,  the  town  where  she 
resided,  the  poor  whom  she  assisted,  the  young  whom  she 
counselled  and  advised,  and  the  religious  society  to  which 
she  belonged,  have  sustained  a  heavy  loss.  If,  however, 


344  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

we  continue  to  think  of  her  as  we  ought ;  to  follow  her 
example ;  and  to  reverence  her  memory  as  it  deserves, 
may  we  not  say,  "  She  is  not  dead,  but  sleepeth  ?  " 

May  we  not  realize  the  truth  as  well  as  the  poetry  of 
these  lines? 

"  Tis  said,  that  when  life  is  ended  here, 
The  spirit  is  borne  to  a  distant  sphere  ; 
That  it  visits  its  earthly  home  no  more, 
Nor  looks  on  the  haunts  it  loved  before. 

'T  is  a  cruel  creed,  believe  it  not  ! 
Death  to  the  good  is  a  milder  lot. 
They  'are  here— they  are  here — that  harmless  pair, 
In  the  yellow  sunshine  and  flowing  air, 
They  watch,  and  wait,  and  linger  around, 
Till  the  day  when  their  bodies  shall  leave  the  ground." 


FUNERAL   OF   PRESIDENT  BATES. 


DUDLEY,  Mass.,  Jan.  19,  1854. 

As  you  will  have  seen  in  so  many  papers  obituary 
notices  of  that  excellent  and  distinguished  divine,  the 
Rev.  Dr.  Bates,  who  died  at  this  place  on  the  14th 
instant,  at  the  age  of  seventy-eight  years,  some  of  your 
readers,  who  have  known  him,  may  feel  an  interest  in 
reading  a  short,  imperfect  account  of  his  funeral,  which 
took  place  on  Tuesday,  the  17th  instant.  It  was  an  occasion 
full  of  the  most  painful  interest  for  those  who  were  present ; 
and  cannot  fail  to  excite  a  corresponding  feeling  in  the  hearts 
of  many  relatives  and  friends  in  various  sections  of  our 
extended  country.  Few  persons  were  so  distinguished 
as  the  deceased  in  the  various  situations  he  has  filled, 
or  were  so  extensively  known,  not  only  in  New  Eng- 
land, but  in  places  far  removed  from  that  which  gave 
him  birth.  The  day  was  cold  and  severe.  A  piercing 
wind,  which  seemed  to  come  from  regions  of  frost  and 
ice,  the  ground  covered  by  a  slight  coating  of  snow, 
the  trees  deprived  of  their  foliage,  and  waving  to  and1 
fro  under  the  influence  of  the  current  of  air,  reminded" 
us  all  that  we  were  in  the  midst  of  a  New  England 
winter. 

As  this  romantic  town  is  made  up  of  lofty  hills  and1 
valleys,  one  might  almost  imagine  himself  in  parts  of 
North  or  South  Wales.  It  is  most  pleasantly  situated,  and 
stands  on  the  Quinnebaug  and  French  rivers.  It  was  a 

M 


346  WORKS   OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

favorite  spot  with  Dr.  Bates  and  his  family,  and  he  had 
become  much  attached  to  the  people,  by  whom  he  was 
almost  idolized. 

It  was  evident,  early  in  the  day,  that  some  severe  loss 
had  fallen  upon  the  town.  The  cessation  from  labor,  the 
walking  to  and  fro  of  the  people,  seemingly  without  any 
fixed  purpose,  their  quiet  but  dejected  looks,  everything 
indicated  that  some  important  but  painful  occurrence  had 
taken  place.  At  noon  arrived  the  carriages  from  Web- 
ster, distant  three  miles,  and  bringing  the  railway  passen- 
gers from  Boston  and  the  intermediate  towns,  who  had 
left  their  homes  and  usual  occupations,  to  pay  this  last 
tribute  of  respect  and  love  to  their  departed  friend.  The 
church  bell  commenced  to  ring  soon  after ;  an  appropri- 
ate and  fervent  prayer  was  made  at  the  parsonage  by  the 
Rev.  Mr.  Bardwell,  of  Oxford,  and  the  body  was  then 
removed  to  the  meeting-house,  parts  of  wrhich  were  draped 
in  the  habiliments  of  mourning,  and  which  was  crowded 
by  an  audience  such  as  is  seldom  seen  on  such  a  day  in 
a  country  town. 

The  services  commenced  at  about  two  o'clock,  with  the 
reading  of  the  hymn : 

"  There  is  an  hour  of  peaceful  rest, 
To  mourning  wanderers  given." 

The  Rev.  L.  Griggs,  of  Millbury,  then  made  a  prayer. 
This  was  followed  by  another  hymn  : 

"  There  is  a  land  of  pure  delight, 
Where  saints  immortal  reign." 

The  Rev.  William  B.  Sprague,  D.  D.,  of  Albany,  then 
delivered  the  funeral  discourse,  which,  for  beauty  of  lan- 
guage, discrimination  of  character,  and  true  eloquence, 
has  been  seldom  if  ever  surpassed,  and  which  will  be  long 
remembered.  The  sentiment  was  taken  from  the  third 
chapter  of  Isaiah,  first  and  second  verses : 


OBSEQUIES  OF  REV.  JOSHUA  BATES.  347 

"For  behold  the  Lord,  the  Lord  of  hosts,  doth  take  away  from  Jerusalem,  and 
from  Judah,  the  stay  and  the  staff,  the  whole  stay  of  bread,  and  the  whole  stay  of 
water.  The  mighty  man,  and  the  man  of  war,  the  judge,  and  the  prophet,  and  the 
prudent,  and  the  ancient." 

The  three  last  characteristics  of  "  the  prophet,"  "  the 
prudent,"  and  "  the  ancient,"  were  those  upon  which  Dr. 
Sprague  particularly  dwelt  in  illustrating  the  character  of 
Dr.  Bates.  He  gave  a  succinct  but  most  interesting 
account  of  his  life ;  spoke  of  his  having  been  the  class- 
mate of  that  distinguished  and  almost  angelic  divine,  the 
Rev.  Mr.  Buckminster,  at  Harvard  College,  and  attaining 
the  first  honor  on  graduating;  of  his  settlement  at  Ded- 
ham,  near  Boston,  in  1803  ;  of  his  unwearied  labors  to 
build  up  the  University  at  Middlebury,  Vermont,  during 
the  twenty-one  years  he  was  its  president ;  of  his  appoint- 
ment as  chaplain  to  Congress  by  the  recommendation  of 
the  late  Silas  Wright  and  other  friends ;  and  finally,  of  his 
settlement  at  Dudley,  in  1843,  when  he  had  reached  his 
sixty-seventh  year ;  an  instance  of  so  late  a  settlement  in 
the  Christian  ministry,  that  it  is  believed  to  have  no  pre- 
cedent in  the  history  of  New  England  churches.  He  paid 
a  just  and  well  merited  compliment  to  the  people  of  Dud- 
ley, who,  deviating  from  the  usual  custom  of  selecting  the 
young  and  inexperienced  as  pastors,  could  discern  and 
knew  how  to  appreciate  those  uncommon  qualities  which 
he  possessed  as  a  religious  teacher  and  pastor ;  and  to 
which,  it  is  believed,  very  few  could  lay  claim  in  an  equal 
degree. 

He  dwelt  on  the  logical  accuracy  of  his  mind,  his  love 
of  investigation,  and  his  determination  to  sound  the  depths 
of  every  subject  to  which  he  turned  his  attention ;  adding 
that  all  the  faculties  of  his  mind  were  so  highly  cultivated, 
so  nicely  balanced,  and  in  such  harmony  with  one  another? 
it  was  difficult  to  say  for  which  he  was  most  distinguished. 

Finally,  he  addressed  the  mourners  with  a  pathos,  a 


348  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

tenderness,  and  propriety,  which  would  not  suffer  in  com- 
parison with  the  most  successful  efforts  of  Bossuet  or  Mas- 
sillon.  He  mentioned  that  Dr.  Bates,  some  years  since? 
had  requested  him  to  perform  this  last  melancholy  duty 
in  case  he  should  survive  him,  and  had  given  him  the 
leading  particulars  of  his  life.  In  this  he  displayed  the 
same  judgment  and  discrimination  which  so  distinguished 
him  upon  other  occasions. 

Horace,  in  his  ode  "  Ad  Lottium"  has  said : 

"  Vixere  fortes  ante  Agamemnona 
Multi  ;  sed  omnes  illacrimabiles 
Urgentur  ignotique  longa 
Nocte,  carent  quia  vate  sacro." 

I  rejoice  that  this  cannot  be  said  of  our  departed  friend, 
and  no  one  could  look  upon  Dr.  Sprague  during  the  deliv- 
ery of  his  discourse  without  being  reminded  of  another 
ode  of  Horace  to  Virgil,  where  he  says : 

"  Multis,  ille  bonis  flebilis  occidit 
Nulli  flebilior  quam  mi  hi." 

But  it  is  unnecessary  to  dwell  longer  upon  the  discourse 
of  Dr.  Sprague,  as  it  will,  of  course,  be  published,  be 
widely  circulated,  and  read  by  the  numerous  relatives  and 
friends  of  Dr.  Bates.  The  opinion  was  expressed  by  every 
one,  that,  while  it  extolled  so  highly  the  various  excel- 
lences and  virtues  which  distinguished  the  character  of 
the  deceased,  it  had  not  over-estimated  them  in  the  least? 
but  had  done  justice  to  them  with  great  discrimination, 
and  truth,  and  feeling. 

The  services  in  the  church  were  closed  by  singing  the 
hymn : 

"  When  I  can  read  my  title  clear, 
To  mansions  in  the  skies." 

.and  by  the  benediction. 

A  procession  was  then  formed,  which  followed  the  body 


OBSEQUIES  OF  REV  JOSHUA  BATES.  349 

from  the  church  to  Webster,  where,  at  half-past  six  o'clock, 
P.  M.,  it  was  taken  on  board  a  railway  car,  and  conveyed 
to  Worcester,  from  which  it  was  next  day  carried  to  Mid- 
dlebury,  Vt,  there  to  be  interred  by  the  side  of  his  first 
wife  and  three  of  his  children,  whom  he  had  survived.  It 
was  attended  by  three  of  his  mourning  and  affectionate 
sons,  and  by  a  deputation  from  the  church  and  parish  of 
Dudley. 

Thus  ended  a  day  which-  will  be  long  remembered  by 
the  people  of  this  town  as  that  which  dissolved  forever  in 
this  world  their  connection  with  one  who,  as  a  husband,  a 
father,  a  citizen,  a  pastor,  and  a  man,  was  beloved,  esteemed^ 
and  venerated  by  all  who  knew  him.  He  has  been  taken 
from  us  by  the  decree  of  a  wise  and  just,  but  merciful 
Providence,  in  the  fulness  of  his  intellectual  and  physical 
powers;  for,  though  aged  in  years,  there  were  scarcely 
any  marks  or  evidences  of  age  about  him  ;  and  every  day 
he  lived,  and  every  literary  effort  he  made,  seemed  to  add 
to  his  reputation  for  wisdom,  learning,  and  goodness. 
Those,  however,  (and  they  are  many,)  who  have  been  his 
pupils,  and  listened  to  his  words  of  wisdom  and  instruction; 
those  who  have  been  benefited  by  his  counsels  and  exam- 
ple, or  encouraged  by  his  always  cheerful  advice ;  his 
bereaved  consort,  the  object  of  his  constant  solicitude  and 
care  ;  his  sons  and  daughters,  whom  he  loved  so  tenderly  ? 
and  whose  affection  and  kindness  in  return  have  been  so 
exemplary ;  in  a  word,  every  one  here  and  elsewhere^ 
who  enjoyed  the  privilege  of  his  acquaintance,  will  never 
forget  the  Christian  philanthropist  whom  they  have  lost. 

"  And  the  night  dew  that  falls,  though  in  silence  it  weeps, 
Shall  brighten  with  verdure  the  grave  where  he  sleeps, 
And  the  tear  that  we  shed,  though  in  secret  it  rolls, 
Shall  long  keep  his  memory  green  in  our  souls." 

S.  D.  B. 
To  the  Editor  of  the  Boston  Daily  Advertiser. 


[From  the  New   York  Herald  of  October  3d,  1854.] 

-':i"i':THE   SCHUYLER  SWINDLE. 

MEETING   OF   THE   STOCKHOLDERS   OF   THE   NEW  YORK  AND  NEW  HAVEN  RAILROAD. 

AN    EXCITING    FIGHT    BETWEEN     MASSACHUSETTS,    CONNECTICUT,    AND    WALL     STREET. 
THE    POLICE    CALLED    IN    TO    SUSTAIN     THE    CHAIR. 

NEW  YORK,  October  3d,  1854. 

A  SPECIAL  meeting  of  the  stockholders  of  the  New  York  and 
New  Haven  Railroad,  was  held  yesterday  morning,  at  11  o'clock, 
at  the  Apollo  Rooms,  in  accordance  with  the  notice  previously 
published.  The  meeting  was  well  attended,  there  being  present 
about  four  hundred  stockholders. 

W.  W.  Boardman  was  called  to  the  chair. 

Upon  taking  the  chair,  he  addressed  the  meeting,  and  said  the 
over-issues  of  Robert  Schuyler  demanded  action.  A  great  fraud 
had  been  perpetrated,  and  somebody  must  be  the  loser.  There 
were  two  parties  assembled  there — the  holders  of  the  good  and  of 
the  bad  stock.  The  directors,  he  said,  had  carefully  prepared  a 
report  for  the  stockholders,  which  he  would  now  lay  before  them. 
"  Gentlemen,"  said  he,  6<  what  is  your  pleasure  ?  Shall  the  report 
be  now  read  ?  " 

Several  Voices.     "  Yes,"  "  yes." 

Chairman.     "  The  secretary  will  now  read  the  report." 

As  soon  as  the  reading  of  the  report  was  finished,  a  gentleman, 
dressed  in  a  blue  coat,  with  brass  buttons,  and  looking  very  much 
like  the  late  Daniel  Webster,  arose,  and  began  to  speak.  It  was 
evident  his  bearing  and  appearance  impressed  every  one  present 
with  the  idea  that  he  was  some  gentleman  of  importance  who  stood 


THE  SCHUYLER  FEAUD.  351 

before  them ;  and  immediately  there  were  cries  of  "  name," 
"  name." 

Chairman.  "  Mr.  Bradford,  of  Roxbury,  (Massachusetts,) 
gentlemen." 

Several  Voices.  "Take  the  stand."  "Take  the  platform." 
"  Let  us  all  hear." 

Chairman.  "Keep  order,  gentlemen,  and  you  shall  all  hear." 
"  Mr.  Bradford,  will  you  come  to  the  stand  ?  " 

Mr.  Bradford,  in  obedience  to  the  call,  then  mounted  the 
platform,  and  spoke  as  follows  :  * 

MR.  PRESIDENT  AND  GENTLEMEN, — Being  the  holder  of  a 
considerable  amount  of  stock  in  the  New  York  and  New 
Haven  Railroad  from  its  commencement ;  having  bought 
it  as  an  investment  of  capital  only,  and  having  never 
purchased  or  sold  a  share  since  I  became  one  of  the  orig- 
inal subscribers ;  having  been  intrusted  also  with  a  large 
number  of  proxies  by  shareholders  residing  in  Boston 
and  its  vicinity,  I  hope  I  may  not  be  considered  as  mak- 
ing an  unreasonable  demand  upon  your  time  or  patience, 
by  offering  a  few  observations  upon  the  business  which 
has  called  us  here  to-day.  A  fraud  has  been  committed 
by  one  "  who  (we  are  told  in  the  report  which  has  been 
read)  had  sustained  the  highest  reputation  for  intelligence 
and  integrity,  and  was  particularly  distinguished  for  his 
experience  and  skill  in  the  construction  and  management 
of  railroads,"  of  such  a  stupendous  character  as  to  be 
almost,  if  not  quite,  without  a  parallel  in  the  history  of 
the  past,  or  in  the  experience  of  any  one  living.  The 
sum  of  two  millions  of  dollars,  or  about  that  amount,  has 
been  obtained  by  fraud,  by  Robert  Schuyler,  late  Presi- 
dent of  the  New  York  and  New  Haven  Railroad ;  and  we 
have  been  called  here  (many  of  us  from  our  distant 
homes)  to  see  what  order  we  will  take  in  this  emergency. 
Various  plans  have  been  proposed,  by  the  public  press  and 
by  individuals,  and  some  of  the  holders  of  the  fraudulent 


352  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

certificates  have,  as  might  have  been  expected,  expressed 
the  confident  opinion,  that  this  company  is  bound  to 
assume  those  certificates  which  have  been  fraudulently 
issued,  and  amounting  to  nearly  two  millions  of  dollars. 
On  the  other  hand,  the  directors,  a  few  days  ago,  have 
published  their  report,  in  which  they  have  abstained  from 
expressing  any  opinion  upon  the  liability  of  the  company, 
but  have  laid  before  you  the  opinion  of  high  and  eminent 
counsel  in  New  York,  who  declare  that  the  corporation 
is  free  from  all  liability. 

I  have  read  with  care  that  opinion  of  the  learned  coun- 
sel, which,  I  may  add,  has  only  confirmed  the  conclusion 
which  I  had  previously  formed  ;  and  unless  I  am  greatly 
deceived,  it  will  be  triumphantly  sustained  by  the 
stockholders  assembled  here  to  day. 

What  I,  as  an  individual,  may  think  upon  the  subject, 
may  be  quite  immaterial ;  but  I  have  had  many  oppor- 
tunities of  hearing  the  opinions  of  able  lawyers,  learned 
judges,  and  distinguished  counsellors  in  my  own  state, 
(Massachusetts,)  and  I  have  not  yet  met  with  the  first 
man,  who  expressed  the  opinion  that  the  corporation  is 
liable.  Indeed,  I  apprehend  that,  if  the  fact  could  be 
ascertained,  the  same  opinion  would  be  found  to  prevail 
generally  throughout  the  community.  We  must  all 
regret  the  heavy  loss  which  is  likely  to  fall  upon  some 
persons  who  are  the  innocent  holders  of  the  fraudulent 
certificates,  and  who  lay  so  much  stress  upon  the  acts  of 
an  agent  as  binding  his  employers,  reminding  us  of  that 
principle  of  law  "  qidfacit  per  aliumfacit  per  se"  forgetting, 
however,  altogether,  that  other  useful  caution,  "caveat 
emptor"  It  seems,  however,  almost  incredible,  that  any 
disinterested  person  should  expect  this  company  to  make 
good  to  the  holders  of  the  spurious  shares  the  loss  they  may 
have  sustained ;  as  every  one  must  see  that,  were  they  dis- 
posed to  do  so,  they  have  not  the  power  without  violating 


THE  SCHUYLER  FRAUD.  353 

the  charter,  and  the  rights  of  such  shareholders  as  might 
refuse  their  consent ;  besides  establishing  a  principle  which 
would  be  fatal  to  the  safety  and  security  of  every  kind  of 
incorporated  property.  No  doubt,  Mr.  President,  many 
gentlemen  here  present,  like  myself,  are  owners  of  prop- 
erty in  incorporated  companies ;  but  let  it  once  be  settled 
that  an  agent  or  officer,  whom  we  appoint  to  do  certain 
acts  permitted  by  the  charter,  can  do  any  other  he  pleases, 
in  violation  of  that  instrument,  and  by  an  act  of  fraud 
annihilate  the  property  he  was  chosen  to  guard  and  pro- 
tect, who,  permit  me  to  inquire,  under  such  circumstances, 
would  continue  to  hold  property  so  situated  ?  I  would 
not  for  one;  and  all  such  investments  would  soon  have  few 
if  any  advocates. 

A  corporation  is,  as  it  has  been  defined,  "  a  society."  It 
consists  of  many  persons  or  partners,  who  unite  for  the 
general  good  of  all  concerned.  Every  holder  of  shares  in 
the  New  York  and  New  Haven  Railroad,  is  the  partner,  in 
this  sense,  of  all  others  holding  shares.  Now,  Mr.  Presi-^ 
dent,  let  me  inquire  of  any  merchant  here  present  how 
he  would  act  in  a  case  which  I  will  suppose  to  happen.  I 
will  suppose  him  to  be  a  special  partner  in  whal  is  called 
a  limited  copartnership,  under  the  revised  statutes  of  New 
York,  and  to  have  furnished  all  the  capital  agreed  upon. 
He  lives,  perhaps,  at  a  distance  from  the  city,  like  many 
of  the  stockholders  in  this  company,  but  occasionally  visits 
New  York ;  and,  in  going  to  his  counting-room  some  morn- 
ing, finds  it  full  of  new  and  strange  faces.  He  calls  one  of 
his  original  general  partners  aside,  and  inquires  who  they 
are,  and  receives  for  answer,  that  he,  the  general  part- 
ner, wanting  to  raise  a  certain  sum  of  money  to  pay  his 
private  debts,  had,  for  a  valuable  consideration,  (but  in 
violation  of  the  articles  of  copartnership,)  admitted  several 
new  special  partners  into  the  concern.  Let  me  next 
inquire,  what  course  would  probably  be  taken  by  the  orig- 

45 


354  WORKS  OF  S.  D  BRADFORD. 

inal  special  partner  under  these  circumstances?  Would 
he  assume  the  new  special  spurious  partners,  or  would  he 
inform  them  of  the  error  they  had  made,  demand  their 
withdrawal,  and,  on  receiving  their  refusal,  call  in  the 
police  ? 

It  is  easy  to  answer  a  question  of  this  kind,  because  no 
one  feels  any  pecuniary  interest  in  it ;  but  this  is  precisely 
the  case  of  the  holders  of  the  fraudulent  certificates  in  this 
company,  who  demand  of  the  original  stockholders  to 
assume  the  same.  To  such  a  proposition  I  feel  assured 
you  will  never  agree,  but  will  reject  it  with  unanimity. 

I  am  aware  that  such  a  decision  may  lead  to  litigation, 
and  that  it  has  been  announced  already  that  "  the  Board 
of  Brokers  in  New  York,  have  had  a  meeting,  and 
appointed  several  members  of  the  board  a  committee 
to  defend  the  rights  of  the  members  in  the  matter 
of  the  New  York  and  New  Haven  Railroad  Com- 
pany, and  to  fight  the  case  with  the  funds  of  the 
.  Board,  by  employing  counsel,  and  taking  other  needful 
measures."  It  has  also  been  announced,  that  they  have 
employed  Charles  O'Connor.  But  who 's  afraid,  Mr.  Presi- 
dent ?  We  live,  I  hope,  in  a  land  of  law ;  and  the  great- 
est eloquence  and  most  profound  learning  must,  and  I  trust 
will,  yield  to  justice.  I,  for  one,  do  not  fear  the  result ;  and 
I  do  not  think  you  need  have  any  serious  apprehensions. 
I  cannot  see  why  the  Board  of  Brokers  have  any  special 
reason  to  complain.  I  hope  I  have  as  much  respect  for 
them  as .  I  ought  to  have,  but  they  must  forgive  me  if  I 
look  to  another  and  a  different  quarter,  to  learn  the  rules 
of  morality,  truth,  and  justice. 

It  is  not  true  that  this  company  have  repudiated,  or 
intend  to  repudiate,  any  debt  they  owe.  They  repudiate 
only  the  fraud  of  Robert  Schuyler.  They  acknowledge 
the  validity  of  all  acts  of  his  which  he  did  by  their  author- 
ity ;  but  they  never  empowered  him  to  do  what  they  could 


THE  SCHUYLER  FRAUD.  355 

not  do  themselves,  or,  colore  officii,  to  cheat  and  defraud  the 
public  to  raise  money  to  pay  his  private  debts.  For  such 
he  is  answerable,  but  not  the  company. 

I  come  here,  gentlemen,  the  representative  of  nearly  all 
the  stock  in  this  road  owned  in  Boston  and  its  vicinity,  which, 
unsolicited  on  my  part,  has  been  committed  to  my  care. 
All  the  gentlemen  who  have  given  me  their  proxies,  (and 
more  high-minded  or  upright  men  can  nowhere  be  found,) 
have  instructed  me  to  vote  against  the  assumption  of  those 
spurious  certificates,  and  I  shall  do  so,  not  only  in  obedience 
to  their  requests,  but  also  in  obedience  to  my  own  sense  of 
what  is  just  and  right. 

We  are  a  peaceful  corporation,  and  would  prefer  to  be 
at  peace  (to  use  the  words  of  General  Taylor)  "  with  all 
the  world,  and  the  rest  of  mankind."  Our  desire  is  peace  ; 
but,  should  the  holders  of  the  spurious  stock  pursue  us 
through  the  law,  we  will,  I  trust,  be  found  ready  to  defend 
our  rights ;  and,  in  the  language  of  Lord  John  Russell  on 
the  Turkish  war,  "  May  God  defend  the  right." 


[Reported  for  the  New  York  Journal  of  Commerce.] 

MEETING   OP   THE  NEW  YORK  &  NEW 
HAVEN  RAILROAD  STOCKHOLDERS. 

GREAT  GATHERING  IN  BREWSTER'S  HALL,  NEW  HAVEN. 
THE   SPEECHES   AND   THE   BE8OLUTIONS. 

THE  long-talked-of  meeting  of  the  stockholders,  and  others 
interested  in  the  affairs  of  the  New  York  and  New  Haven  Rail- 
road Company  was  held  in  Brewster's  Hall,  New  Haven,  yester- 
day, pursuant  to  the  following  notice  : 

NOTICE  is  hereby  given,  that  a  special  meeting  of  the  stockholders  of  the  New 
York  and  New  Haven  Railroad  Company  will  he  held  at  Brewster's  Hall,  in  the 
city  of  New  Haven,  on  Wednesday,  the  eighth  day  of  November  next,  at  eleven 
o'clock,  forenoon,  to  take  such  order  as  they  may  deem  expedient,  upon  the  issues 
of  fraudulent  certificates  of  stock  by  Robert  Schuyler,  late  President  and  Transfer 
Agent  of  the  Company,  and  to  transact  any  other  business  that  may  come 
properly  before  said  meeting. 

WILLIAM  W.  BOARD  MAN,  President  pro  tempore. 

NEW  YORK,  October  15. 

Immediately  on  the  arrival  of  the  eleven  o'clock  train  from  New 
York,  the  hall  became  pretty  well  filled,  and  the  Hon.  William 
W.  BOARDMAN  took  the  chair.  There  was  a  large  delegation  pres- 
ent from  New  York,  and  several  persons  from  Boston,  Providence, 
and  Philadelphia.  We  saw  one  solitary  lady  in  the  audience,  wrho 
appeared  to  take  a  deep  interest  in  the  proceedings.  Mr.  E. 
S.  Abernethy,  the  Secretary,  having  read  the  above  call,  Mr. 
Robinson,  of  Philadelphia,  rose  and  said  : 

Mr.  President, — It  is  very  clear  that,  before  we  get  through 
this  day's  work,  there  will  be  occasion  to  take  a  scale  vote,  and  I 


LIABILITY  OF  STOCKHOLDERS.  357 

therefore  hope  a  committee  may  be  appointed  to  decide  upon  this 
question,  and  decide  what  is  good  and  what  is  bogus  stock.  I 
therefore  beg  leave  to  offer  the  following  resolution  : 

Rtsolved,  That  a  committee  of  two  be  appointed  to  ascertain  what  stockholders 
are  present  in  person,  and  by  proxy ;  and  to  act  as  judges  of  the  vote,  in  the  event 
of  a  scale  vote  being  called  for. 

Mr.  Homer,  of  Boston,  and  Mr.  Brown,  of  Providence,  were 
appointed  said  committee,  when 

Mr.  S.  D.  BRADFORD,  of  Bostqn,  rose  and  said : 

Mr.  Chairman :  The  Committee  of  Investigation  are  ready  to 
present  their  report,  prepared  at  the  request  of  the  meeting  held 
in  New  York  on  the  3d  of  October. 

Mr.  BRADFORD,  as  chairman  of  this  committee,  now  read  the 
following 

REPORT. 

AT  a  meeting  of  the  stockholders  of  the  New  York  and  New 
Haven  Railroad,  held  at  the  Apollo  Rooms,  Broadway,  New  York, 
on  the  third  day  of  October,  1854,  it  was  voted : 

Whereas  it  is  believed,  by  the  shareholders  of  the  New  York  and  New  Haven 
Railroad  Company,  that,  owing  to  the  manner  in  which  its  affairs  have  hitherto 
been  conducted,  the  earnings  of  the  road  have  been  less  than  they  should  be ;  and 
that  a  road  which  has  the  capacity  of  becoming  one  of  the  most  profitable  in  the 
Union,  has,  for  a  considerable  time,  made  no  return  whatever  to  the  holders  of  the 
shares;  therefore 

Resolved,  That  a  Committee,  consisting  of  —  persons,  be  chosen  from  among  its 
shareholders,  to  investigate  and  review  the  proceedings  of  its  managers  and  em- 
ployes, from  its  commencement  to  the  present  time,  and  see  if  any  favoritism  has 
been  used  in  the  giving  out  of  contracts,  or  making  purchases  on  account  of  the 
road ;  if  all  its  income  has  been  duly  accounted  for,  and  appropriated  to  legitimate 
purposes  ;  if  suitable  and  capable  employes  have  been  engaged  by  its  managers  to 
perform  the  various  duties  devolved  upon  them ;  and  to  report,  at  a  future  meet- 
ing of  the  shareholders,  the  result  of  said  investigations ;  making,  at  that  time,  a 
full  disclosure  of  all  proceedings  which  may  have  come  under  their  inspection,  by 
reason  of  which  the  shareholders  have  suffered  any  damage  or  loss,  or  have  a  claim 
upon  any  person  or  persons,  for  injuries  received,  or  for  acts  in  violation  of  the 
charter. 

Voted,  That  S.  D.  Bradford,  of  West  Roxbury,  Massachusetts ;  Charles  G.  Gris- 
wold,  of  Lyme,  Connecticut ;  Eli  A.  Elliott,  of  Clinton,  Connecticut ;  H.  G.  Dyar, 
and  Philip  Dater  of  New  York ;  be  appointed  the  committee  under  the  preced- 
ing vote." 


358  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

The  committee,  to  whom  the  investigation  of  the  affairs  of  the 
New  York  and  New  Haven  Railroad  was  thus  delegated,  beg  leave 
respectfully  to  report,  that,  as  the  committee  was  directed  "  to 
investigate  and  review  the  proceedings  of  the  managers  and  em- 
ployes of  the  New  York  and  New  Haven  Railway  from  its  com- 
mencement to  the  present  time,"  a  period  of  eight  years,  it  became 
apparent  at  once  that  to  accomplish  such  a  work  in  a  satisfactory 
manner  would  require  much  time  and  labor,  and  incur  considerable 
expense.  Those  who  are  conversant  with  such  investigations  must 
be  aware  that  there  are  many  perplexities  to  be  disentangled  ;  that 
to  see*k  is  not  always  to  find ;  that  one  inquiry  often  leads  to 
another,  and  that  success  is  not  easily  attained.  In  confirmation  of 
this,  it  may  not  be  out  of  place  to  state  that  a  similar  investigation 
of  the  aifairs  of  another  railroad,  under  a  resolution  very  much  like 
the  one  already  cited,  was  ordered  about  two  years  ago  in  another 
state,  (Vermont,)  on  the  5th  of  May,  1852,  but  the  report  of  the 
committee,  consisting  of  three  gentlemen,  distinguished,  perhaps, 
beyond  all  others  for  their  skill  and  knowledge  of  railroad  aifairs, 
was  not  made  until  the  1st  of  July,  1853,  and  at  an  expense  of 
fifteen  thousand  dollars,  which  had  been  provided  for  by  the  vote 
ordering  the  inquiry  to  be  made.  They  were  also  fully  empow- 
ered to  employ  such  means,  and  to  hire  such  assistance,  as  they 
might  think  necessary. 

Your  committee  sought  personal  interviews  not  only  with  gen- 
tlemen who  had  performed  a  similar  service,  but  with  experienced 
accountants  also  most  accustomed  to  such  examinations,  but  no  one 
named  less  than  six  months  as  the  period  which  such  an  investiga- 
tion as  is  called  for  by  the  resolutions  would  require.  It  is  true 
that  your  committee  were  ordered  to  report  at  "  a  future  meeting," 
and  not  on  the  second  Wednesday  of  November  ;  but  it  seemed 
nevertheless  the  wish  and  expectation,  at  the  meeting  at  the  Apollo 
Rooms,  that  they  should  be  prepared  to  report  on  that  day,  and 
they  very  much  regret  that  it  has  been  found  impracticable  to  do 
so.  It  was  admitted,  on  all  hands,  that  the  time  would  not  per- 
mit such  an  examination  to  be  made  as  the  occasion  seemed  to 
demand,  and  that  an  imperfect  or  incorrect  report  would  be 
unsatisfactory,  and  without  any  beneficial  result. 

Under  these  circumstances,  your  committee,  after  much  anxious 


LIABILITY  OF  STOCKHOLDERS.  359 

consultation  and  reflection,  came  to  the  conclusion  that  to  proceed 
with  the  investigation  would  be  doing  injustice,  not  only  to  them- 
selves, but  also  to  the  best  interests  of  the  company,  and  they  trust 
the  course  pursued  will  be  approved  by  the  stockholders. 

Your  committee  conclude  by  requesting  that  they  may  be  dis-  A 
charged  from  the  trust  which  was  committed  to  their  hands  on   the 
3d  of  October  last.     Mr.   Dater,  of  New  York,  having  declined  to 
act  upon  the  committee,  his  name  is  not  appended  to  this  report. 

S.  D.  BRADFORD, 
CHARLES  G.  GRISWOLD, 
ELI  A.  ELLIOT, 
H.  G.  DYAR. 
New  Haven,  November  6,  1854. 

After  Mr.  Bradford  had  read  the  report,  he  said  : 
MR.  BRADFORD'S  SPEECH. 

MR.  CHAIRMAN, — Having,  upon  a  former  occasion, 
expressed  my  opinion  upon  the  course  which,  as  stock- 
holders of  the  New  York  and  New  Haven  Railway,  we 
ought  to  take,  and  that  we  are  not  liable  on  account  of 
the  fraud  committed  by  Robert  Schuyler,  I  would  ask 
your  indulgence  for  a  short  time  only,  whilst  I  offer  a  few 
observations  upon  the  position  in  which  we  find  ourselves 
placed  at  the  present  time. 

You  must  be  all  aware  that,  since  our  last  meeting,  high 
legal  advice  has  been  taken  by  the  holders  of  the  fraudu- 
lent certificates,  and  that  several  learned  counsellors  in 
New  York  have  given  an  opinion  in  favor  of  the  liability 
of  the  company.  This  is  a  fact  which  is  not  to  be  con- 
cealed, and  which,  I  presume,  no  one  present  has  any  dis- 
position to  deny ;  but  still,  Mr.  Chairman,  I  cannot  per- 
ceive any  particular  reason  for  apprehension  on  this 
account.  I  know  not  why  it  is  so,  but  such  opinions  do 
not  alarm  people  now  as  they  once  did.  It  was  remarked 
by  Junius,  (an  acute  observer  of  men  and  manners)  nearly 
a  hundred  years  ago,  in  speaking  of  lawyers,  "  That,  the 


360  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

indiscriminate  defence  of  right  and  wrong  contracts  the 
understanding,  whilst  it  corrupts  the  heart ;  and  that,  if 
there  be  any  instances  upon  record  (as  some  there  are 
undoubtedly)  of  genius  and  morality  united  in  a  lawyer, 
1  they  are  distinguished  by  their  singularity,  and  operate  as 
exceptions." 

I  am  not  sure,  Mr.  Chairman,  that  I  would  be  willing 
to  go  quite  so  far  as  this,  and  I  am  very  desirous  to  do  full 
justice  to  the  high  character  and  standing  of  the  learned 
gentlemen  employed  by  the  holders  of  the  fraudulent 
certificates ;  nor  would  I  undervalue  their  power  because 
they  are  opposed  to  us;  but  yet  I  must  confess  that, 
whilst  I  was  reading  their  elaborate  opinion,  I  could  not 
help  thinking  that,  had  they  in  the  first  instance  been 
engaged  by  the  holders  of  the  original  and  true  shares, 
these  ingenious  gentlemen  would  have  made  a  much  more 
powerful  argument  for  our  side,  and  for  a  very  good  rea- 
son, too — because  I  believe  it  to  be  the  right  one.  It  has 
been  said,  (though  I  will  not  vouch  for  the  truth  of 
the  statement,)  that  it  is  the  custom  for  the  lawyers  in 
New  York  to  give  an  opinion  in  favor  of  the  wishes  of 
the  persons  who  consult  them.  If  that  be  so,  the  matter 
is  explained  at  once.  No  doubt  you  all  remember  the 
story  of  the  advocate,  who,  having  made  a  learned  and 
eloquent  speech  against  his  own  side  by  mistake,  as  soon 
as  he  had  discovered  his  error,  making  a  long  pause,  said, 
u  Gentlemen  of  the  jury,  such  are  the  arguments  which 
will  no  doubt  be  made  by  my  opponent.  Now  you  will 
please  listen  to  me  whilst  I  lay  before  you  my  side  of  the 
case." 

I  stated,  you  may  remember,  at  our  last  meeting,  that 
I  had  nowhere  met  with  a  judge  or  lawyer  in  Boston  or 
its  vicinity,  who  had  expressed  an  opinion  that  the  com- 
pany are  liable;  and  you  will  no  doubt  recollect  how  that 
statement  was  commented  upon,  and  has  since  furnished 


LIABILITY  OF  STOCKHOLDERS.  361 

the  subject  for  so  many  communications  for  the  press.  I 
repeat,  however,  that  statement  here  to-day;  and  have 
heard  of  no  change  since  our  last  meeting.  I  have  met 
with  no  one  ready  to  maintain  the  doctrine  of  unlimited 
power  in  a  transfer  agent,  as  laid  down  by  Judge  Bronson 
and  others ;  nor  do  I  believe  it  will  be  sustained  by  the 
courts  of  law.  Why,  such  a  latitudinarian  principle 
would  jeopardize,  or  wholly  destroy,  the  security  of  all 
kinds  of  incorporated  or  other,  property  intrusted  to  the 
care  of  directors  or  agents.  The  treasurer  of  the  United 
States  might  defraud  the  government  of  all  the  money  in 
the  sub-treasury  in  a  single  day.  A  person  having  mil- 
lions of  property  holden  in  this  way,  might  go  to  bed  as 
rich  as  Croesus,  and  wake  up  next  morning  as  poor  as 
Lazarus.  And  yet  we  are  gravely  told  that,  if  we  deny 
this  unlimited  power  to  a  transfer  agent,  no  one  will 
invest  any  longer  in  our-  railway,  or  other  incorporated 
companies.  But  who,  let  me  inquire,  would  ever  invest 
in  them  at  all  hereafter,  if  the  principle  be  once  admitted 
that  property  in  them  can  be  rendered  valueless,  nay, 
annihilated,  by  the  fraud  of  one  of  the  officers  or 
employes  of  such  a  company  ?  Mr.  O'Connor  informs  us 
that  if  we  will  assume  the  fraudulent  shares,  the  capital 
stock  of  the  company  will  be  depreciated  only  forty  per 
cent.  Of  course,  had  Mr.  Schuyler  issued  fifty  thousand 
instead  of  twenty  thousand  shares,  it  would,  by  the  same 
arithmetic,  have  been  annihilated,  or  rendered  worthless. 
But  these  certificates,  we  are  told  by  the  learned  coun- 
sellors, passing  from  hand  to  hand,  are  very  convenient, 
and  if  we  deny  the  transfer  agent  the  power  of  doing  a& 
he  likes,  and  issuing  as  many  as  he  pleases,  it  will  greatly 
and  injuriously  retard  the  present  expeditious  mode  of 
doing  business,  and  incommode  the  Stock  Exchange.  Well, 
Mr.  Chairman,  suppose  this  be  admitted,  what  then  ?  When 
we  lend  our  money  on  mortgage,  we  require  the  registry 

46 


36£  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

of  deeds  to  be  searched  to  ascertain  that  the  property  is 
unincumbered ;  and  we  require,  also,  to  have  a  certificate 
from  some  able  lawyer  that  the  title  is  good  •  and  in  some 
places  in  my  native  state,  when  a  person  lends  money  to  a 
town,  he  requires  not  only  the  note  of  the  town  treasurer, 
but  also  a  copy  of  the  vote  of  the  town  authorizing  him  to 
borrow  the  money.  Why,  let  me  ask,  should  we  not  use 
as  much  caution  when  we  invest  our  money  in  railway  or 
other  incorporated  companies,  or  lend  it  upon  a  hypothe- 
cation of  their  shares  ?  Can  any  one  doubt  that  this  stu- 
pendous fraud  of  Robert  Schuyler  will  introduce  new 
safe-guards  in  the  transfer  of  stocks  of  every  kind  ?  I  shall 
be  very  much  mistaken  if  it  does  not. 

Those  of  you  who  have  carefully  read  the  opinions  of 
the  counsel  in  favor  of  the  liability  of  the  company,  can- 
not, I  think,  have  failed  to  remark  that  the  principal 
reasons  assigned  by  them  are,  first,  that  the  power  of  the 
transfer  agent  is  unlimited ;  and,  secondly,  that  a  person 
buying  shares  or  lending  money  upon  them  had  no  access 
to  the  books  of  the  company,  and  could  not,  therefore, 
ascertain  whether  he  had  over-issued  or  not.  Judge  Bron- 
son,  however,  says  that  "if,  as  transfer  agent,  Schuyler  had 
issued  a  promissory  note  in  the  name  of  the  company,  he 
would  have  stepped  entirely  beyond  his  powers,  and  would 
have  bound  no  one  but  himself. "  It  is  consoling  to  hear 
from  one  of  the  learned  counsellors,  that  there  was  any- 
thing he  could  not  do,  as  agent  of  the  company ;  but  is  it 
not  plain  also,  that  "  he  stepped  equally  beyond  his  pow- 
ers" when  he  issued  certificates  of  shares  which  had  no 
existence  in  fact,  which  had  and  could  have  no  value,  and 
which  were  prohibited  by  the  charter  ?  And  in  case  he 
had  issued  a  promissory  note  in  the  name  of  the  company, 
I  can  see  no  reason  why  it  would  not  have  been  as  bind- 
ing as  his  issue  of  these  fraudulent  certificates,  for  the 
purchaser  or  holder  in  that  case,  also,  could  not  have 


LIABILITY  OF  STOCKHOLDERS.  363 

access  to  the  books,  and  might  have  supposed  that,  as  he 
was  president  of  the  company,  he  might  have  been  author- 
ized to  issue  the  note  by  a  special  vote  of  the  directors. 
If  the  argument  be  good  in  the  one  case,  it  would  seem 
that  it  ought  to  be  equally  good  in  the  other.  You  will 
also  have  probably  remarked  that  there  is  a  discrepancy 
in  the  opinions  given  by  Mr.  O'Connor  and  Judge  Bronson- 
The  first  says :  "  I  am  of  opinion,  that  the  directors  may 
refuse  to  recognize  as  stock  ull  shares  which  can  be  clearly 
and  certainly  traced  to  an  origin  in  the  over-issue."  The 
latter,  however,  speaking  of  those  who  are  holders  of  what 
are  called  spurious  certificates,  says,  "  Those  who  have,  in 
the  usual  way,  obtained  certificates  in  their  own  names,  are 
stockholders  in  the  company,  and  are  entitled  to  be  treated 
as  such  for  all  purposes."  Such  are  the  contradictions  into 
which  even  the  most  learned  and  ingenious  fall,  when  they 
undertake  to  support  a  doctrine  not  founded  on  truth  and 
reason. 

"  Who  shall  decide  when  lawyers  disagree, 
And  learned  casuists  doubt,  like  O  and  B  ?  " 

Well,  Mr.  Chairman,  if  I  have  succeeded  in  making 
myself  understood,  it  will  have  been  readily  seen  that? 
in  my  opinion,  this  question  can  be  settled  only  by 
the  judicial  tribunals  of  the  country,  and  there,  I  hope, 
we  shall  leave  it.  I  have  no  fears  of  the  result,  if  the  case 
can  only  be  brought  fairly  under  their  cognizance.  But 
to  depreciate  the  stock  two-fifths  of  its  value  by  assum- 
ing the  fraudulent  shares,  is  what,  I  trust,  we  shall  never 
consent  to  do.  I  believe  we  have  no  right  to  do  so,  if  we 
would.  At  the  same  time,  unless  compelled,  I  see  no 
good  reason  for  taking  a  formal  vote  upon  the  question. 
It  was  a  remark  of  the  late  Mr.  Webster,  in  his  cele- 
brated speech  of  the  7th  of  March,  that  "  it  was  not 
expedient  to  re-enact  a  law  of  God."  May  we  not  say> 
with  equal  truth,  that  it  is  inexpedient  "  to  re-enact "  a 


364  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

law  of  the  sovereign  state  of  Connecticut  ?  The  shares 
which  Robert  Schuyler  issued  by  excess  are,  in  my  opin- 
ion, null  and  void  by  the  charter,  and  let  that  content  us. 
By  refusing,  however,  to  assume  them,  we  do  not  (as  some 
have  erroneously  stated)  refuse  to  pay  a  debt,  for  we  do 
not  owe  one.  We  repudiate  only  the  fraud  of  the  trans- 
fer agent.  But  since  the  directors  informed  us,  at  our 
last  meeting,  that  they  wanted  our  advice,  if  it  be  your 
opinion  that  there  is  the  remotest  danger  of  their  assum- 
ing the  fraudulent  certificates,  or  making  a  compromise ; 
and  that  our  omission  to  take  a  formal  vote  on  the  subject 
might  be  considered  an  implied  approval,  on  our  part,  of 
such  a  course,  in  that  case,  my  opinion  is,  that  the 
sooner  we  settle  the  question  by  a  stock  vote,  the  better. 

But  whatever,  Mr.  Chairman,  we  may  decide  to  do,  let 
us  reject  the  pernicious  counsel  of  those  who  would  rec- 
ommend a  compromise.  Indeed,  I  cannot  but  express 
my  wonder  that  any  one  should  make  such  a  suggestion. 
Coalition  in  politics,  and  compromise  in  the  payment  of 
debts  !  Such  are  the  proposals  which  we  too  often  hear 
made  in  these  degenerate  days,  and  which  may  be  consid- 
ered as  one  of  the  worst  omens  for  the  future.  Who  does 
not  perceive  at  once  that  this  company  is  liable,  or  that  it 
is  not  liable  ?  And  if  it  be  liable,  has  it  come  to  this,  that 
we  are  ready  to  compound  a  fraud,  and,  instead  of  paying 
what  we  owe,  to  make  a  compromise,  and,  like  unfortunate 
or  dishonest  debtors,  pay  but  a  part  of  what  is  due  our 
creditors  ? 

There  may  be  those  who  would  recommend  such  a 
course ;  but  I  cannot  believe  they  can  be  found  in  Con- 
necticut, the  state  so  distinguished  for  religion,  morality, 
and  high  commercial  honor.  We  are  out  of  the  atmos- 
phere of  Wall  street  now,  and  who  does  not  feel  that  he 
breathes  a  purer  and  a  freer  air  ?  When  I  contemplate 
the  character  of  the  state  and  of  the  city  in  which  we 


LIABILITY  OF  STOCKHOLDERS.  365 

have  met  together  to-day,  consecrated  by  the  memory  of 
so  many  illustrious,  good,  and  distinguished  men,  I  would 
say  to  each  one  of  you,  in  the  language  once  addressed 
from  heaven  to  the  Hebrew  prophet,  "  Put  off  thy  shoes 
from  off  thy  feet;  for  the  place  whereon  thou  standest  is 
holy  ground."  Remember  that  we  are  not  acting  for  our- 
selves alone,  but  for  the  widows,  orphans,  poor  clergymen, 
and  savings  banks,  which  have  placed  their  confidence  in 
the  honor  and  safety  of  this .  company,  and  have  invested 
their  hard  earnings  in  its  stock.  They  look  to  us  to  do 
them  justice,  and  can  you  doubt  that  they  are  watching 
our  proceedings  here  to-day  with  the  most  painful  solici- 
tude ?  The  tidings  of  what  we  do  will  soon  cross  the 
Atlantic,  and  be  made  known  in  England,  France,  Ger- 
many, and  even  amidst  the  smiling  valleys  and  snow- 
capped mountains  of  Switzerland ;  for  we  have  stockholders 
in  all  these  countries,  and  also  in  the  East  Indies. 

Let  me  implore  you,  then,  so  to  act  to-day,  that,  if  their 
property  is  to  be  taken  from  them,  the  blame  may  not  be 
laid  to  our  charge,  but  rather  to  that  of  the  established 
judiciary  of  the  land.  They  are  ready  and  willing  to 
assume  the  responsibility,  and  in  their  hands,  I  hope,  we 
shall  leave  the  case. 

Mr.  Chairman,  I  need  to  say  but  a  very  few  words  in 
respect  to  the  resolutions  that  I  am  about  to  offer.  One 
should  speak  of  himself  as  little  as  possible  ;  but  perhaps 
there  is  a  propriety  in  my  presenting  these  resolutions,  as 
it  is  well  known  that  I  entered  the  campaign  against  Rob- 
ert Schuyler  as  long  ago  as  1849,  and  have  never  taken 
off  my  armor  since.  Let  it  not  now  be  said  that  I  would 
kick  the  dead  lion  after  having  encountered  him  in  his 
very  den.  If  the  resolutions  offered  by  Mr.  Young,  at  the 
meeting  held  in  1849,  had  been  acted  upon  and  followed, 
we  should  have  been  saved  all  this  trouble  to-day,  and  the 
road  would,  in  all  probability,  now  have  been  in  the  most 


366  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

prosperous  condition.  These  resolutions  not  only  meet 
my  own  approbation,  but  also  that  of  every  member  of 
the  committee.  They  are  as  follows : 

Whereas,  it  is  apparent  that,  to  promote  the  prosperity  and  suc- 
cess of  the  New  York  and  New  Haven  Railroad  Company,  its 
affairs  should  be  conducted  by  managers  or  directors  enjoying  the 
full  and  entire  confidence  of  the  stockholders,  and  it  is  believed 
that  the  gentlemen  at  present  holding  the  place  of  directors  do  not 
possess  that  confidence  believed  to  be  so  essential ;  therefore, 

Resolved)  That  the  directors  be,  and  they  are  hereby  requested 
to  form  a  new  board,  by  successive  resignations,  and  by  filling 
vacancies,  agreeable  to  the  sixth  section  of  the  act  of  incorporation. 

Resolved,  That  the  following  persons  be,  and  they  are  hereby 
proposed,  as  suitable  persons  to  fill  such  vacancies,  viz.,  James  J. 
Roosevelt,  New  York  ;  J.  Phillips  Phenix,  do.  ;  George  N.  Mil- 
ler, do. ;  Dennis  Kimberly,  New  Haven  ;  Nathaniel  A.  Bacon^  do. ; 
Moncure  Robinson,  Philadelphia  ;  William  L.  Lyon,  Greenwich  : 
Peter  T.  Homer,  Boston  ;  William  W.  Billings,  New  London. 

Resolved,  That  the  directors  be  requested  to  engage  the  services 
of  the  Hon.  Roger  S.  Baldwin,  of  New  Haven,  as  associate  coun- 
sel with  Messrs.  Noyes  and  Wood,  to  defend  the  corporation  in  all 
actions  which  have  been,  or  may  be  brought  against  it. 

Resolved,  That  we  approve  of  the  course  of  the  directors,  in 
having  submitted  the  question  of  liability  to  the  eminent  counsel, 
Messrs.  Noyes  and  Wood,  and  we  recommendr  said  opinion  as  a 
safe  guide  for  their  future  action,  and  that  it  would  be  unwise, 
inexpedient,  and  hazardous  for  this  meeting,  this  corporation,  or 
its  directors,  to  attempt,  in  any  form,  to  subject  the  stockholders 
to  a  burthen  which  neither  the  law  nor  equity  impose  upon  them. 


THE  PLUMMER   PROFESSORSHIP. 

[THE  following  are  the  remarks  made  by  Hon.  S.  D.  Bradford,  in  the  Board 
of  Overseers  of  Harvard  College,  on  Thursday  afternoon  last,  on  the  question  of 
confirming  the  appointment  of  Rev.  F.  D.  Huntington  to  be  Plummer  professor. 
— Boston  Daily  Advertiser,  April  14th,  1855.] 

MR.  PRESIDENT, — I  rise  with  great  reluctance  to  offer  a 
few  observations  upon  the  question  now  under  discussion, 
viz.,  the  confirmation  by  this  board  of  the  nomination  of 
the  Rev.  F.  D.  Huntington,  as  Plummer  professor  in  the 
University  at  Cambridge. 

Finding  that  great  injustice  was  done  to  the  motives 
which  governed  the  vote  I  gave  upon  the  confirmation  of 
another  nomination,  that  of  Judge  Loring,  upon  a  recent 
occasion  for  another  professorship,  I  am  unwilling  by 
giving  a  silent  vote  to-day,  to  subject  myself  to  a  repeti- 
tion of  the  same  difficulty.  On  that  occasion,  my  vote 
was  declared,  by  one  part  of  the  public  press,  to  have 
been  in  favor  of  Judge  Loring,  and,  by  another,  against 
him,  which  could  not  have  happened  had  a  discussion 
taken  place  as  I  considered  most  expedient;  but  other 
counsels  prevailed.  The  question  before  us  to-day  must, 
I  think,  on  many  accounts,  be  considered  as  the  most  im- 
portant which  has  been  brought  to  the  notice  of  the 
board  for  a  great  number  of  years. 

It  seems  to  me  to  open  the  whole  question  of  the 
establishment  of  sectarian  religion  in  the  college  at 
Cambridge. 

I  intend  to  use  the  word  sectarian  in  no  offensive  sense, 


368  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

but  as  indicating  certain  opinions  in  religion,  entertained 
by  a  party  which  has  separated  itself  from  the  established 
church,  (where  one  exits,)  or  which  holds  tenets  different 
from  those  of  the  prevailing  denomination  in  a  kingdom 
or  state. 

Perhaps,  to  prevent  all  misconception,  I  ought  rather 
to  have  said  that  it  opens  the  whole  question  of  uniting 
religious  with  secular  instruction  in  the  university. 

I  would  not,  on  any  account,  impute  to  the  government 
of  the  college  the  design  of  establishing  sectarian  religion 
there,  for  I  believe  there  is  nothing  more  remote  from  their 
intentions  or  wishes ;  but  I  may,  I  hope,  be  permitted  to 
express  the  strong  fears  I  have  that,  if  the  Plummer  pro- 
fessorship be  established,  they  will  be  suspected,  if  not 
actually  charged,  with  such  a  design ;  and  that  it  may  lead 
to  consequences  of  the  most  injurious  character  to  the 
prosperity  and  welfare  of  the  university. 

No  one  can  have  attended  to  the  reading  of  the  statutes 
or  rules  of  the  proposed  professorship,  without  perceiving 
that  they  establish  a  religious  teacher  in  the  university. 
The  professor  is  to  officiate  at  morning  and  evening 
prayers,  to  preach  to  the  government  and  students  on 
Sundays,  to  deliver  lectures,  and  to  cultivate  with  the 
students  habits  of  the  closest  intimacy,  with  a  view  to 
their  religious  and  moral  improvement. 

I  remember  that,  during  a  discussion  at  Cambridge,  in 
1853,  upon  the  question  of  appointing  a  pastoral  teacher 
for  the  college,  when  the  question  was  asked,  by  a  member 
of  the  board,  why,  if  such  a  proceeding  were  expedient, 
measures  were  not  taken  to  re-establish  or  revive  the 
Hollis  professorship,  the  answer  was,  that  the  very 
name  had  such  an  effect  upon  the  religious  sensibilities  of 
some  persons,  it  was  dangerous  even  to  speak  of  it ;  and 
now,  as  I  am  obliged  to  look  upon  the  question,  the 
proposition  before  this  board  is  to  supersede  the  Hollis 


THE  PLUMMEE  PKOFESSOKSHIP.  369 

professorship,  and  establish  another  in  its  place,  with  duties, 
responsibilities,  and  functions,  of  a  greatly  extended 
character. 

I  was  four  years  at  Cambridge,  under  the  late  Profes- 
sor Henry  Ware,  who  was  then  Hollis  professor  of  Divin- 
ity; but,  if  I  understand  the  statutes  or  rules  of  the 
Plummer  professorship,  they  require  double  the  duty  to 
be  performed  by  Mr.  Huntington  which  was  ever  performed 
by  the  late  Dr.  Ware,  with  the  exception  of  hearing  the 
students  recite. 

In  those  days,  there  was  very  little  of  any  personal 
intercourse  between  the  Hollis  professor  and  the  under- 
graduates; and  the  sight  of  a  professor  in  a  student's  room 
was  as  rare  and  uncommon  as  that  of  a  bishop,  a  few 
years  since,  in  some  of  the  rural  districts  of  England. 

I  can  speak  feelingly  on  this  subject,  for,  having  been 
appointed,  in  my  junior  year,  to  deliver  a  sermon  before 
a  certain  religious  society,  to  which  I  belonged,  we  invited 
the  Hollis  professor  to  be  present ;  and,  much  to  my  aston- 
ishment and  dismay,  he  attended,  but  never  can  I  forget 
the  effect  it  produced  on  me.  Vox  hcesit  faucibus. 

Now,  Mr.  President,  if  the  consequences  of  having  had 
a  Hollis  professor,  (with  the  limited  duties  he  had  to  per- 
form,) have  been  such,  formerly,  that  it  is  dangerous  even 
to  allude  to  the  subject,  may  we  not  anticipate  still  more 
serious  consequences  from  the  proposed  establishment  of 
the  Plummer  professorship,  upon  the  more  extended  scale 
I  have  mentioned  ?  It  seems  to  me  it  cannot  be  other- 
wise, and  that  such  a  state  of  things  must  be  prejudicial 
to  the  interests  of  the  college,  which  I  am  most  anxious 
to  preserve  from  being  charged  with  sectarian  influence  of 
any  kind. 

It  is  but  a  short  time  since  the  complaint  was  frequently 
heard,  that  there  was  little  if  any  addition,  from  year  to 
year,  to  the  number  of  students  at  Cambridge,  and  the 

47 


370  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

question  was  often  asked,  how  happens  it,  when  every 
thing  else  in  this  state  has  increased  so  much,  (the  popula- 
tion having  then  reached  nearly  a  million,)  the  number 
of  students  at  Cambridge  is  almost  stationary  ? 

Now  for  the  last  few  years  we  have  witnessed  a  most 
gratifying  change.  The  students  have  greatly  increased 
in  number,  and  are  beginning  to  be  sent  there  in  an 
increased  ratio,  by  Orthodox,  as  well  as  Unitarian,  parents; 
and  I  had  fancied  it  was  partly  because  our  Orthodox 
friends,  (a  good  number  of  whom  are  now  members  of  this 
board,)  have  inquired  into  the  matter  for  themselves, 
found  all  right  at  Cambridge,  and  have  made  a  favorable 
report  to  their  brethren,  that  there  really  is  no  religious 
test  at  the  college,  and  that  each  and  every  sect  is  fairly 
dealt  with.  I  believe  this  has  always  been  the  case,  but  I 
have  heard  that,  at  one  time,  a  different  opinion  prevailed 
in  the  country,  and  that  it  was  supposed  to  have  had  an 
injurious  effect  upon  the  prosperity  and  growth  of  the 
college. 

Some  persons  may  perhaps  think  that  I  am  unnecessa- 
rily alarmed  on  the  subject  of  sectarian  religion  as  con- 
nected with  education ;  but  it  has  been  my  fortune  to 
witness  the  evil  effects  of  attempting  to  unite  religious 
with  secular  instruction,  not  only  in  my  own  country,  but 
in  Great  Britain  also,  where  it  has  defeated  every  attempt 
of  the  government  to  establish  a  system  of  national  educa- 
tion. Ministry  after  ministry  has  brought  forward  its  plan 
to  accomplish  an  object  of  such  vast  importance,  but  every 
one  has  failed  on  this  account. 

Most  educationists  agree  that  religion  is  too  important 
a  part  of  education  to  be  omitted  in  any  complete  system, 
if  men  could  only  agree  in  defining  religious  truth,  and 
the  proper  mode  of  imparting  it  \  but  this  agreement  seems 
to  be  utterly  impracticable. 

In  a  debate,  some  time  ago,  in  England,  on  this  subject, 


THE  PLUMMER  PROFESSORSHIP.  371 

Lord  Brougham  addressed  the  House  of  Lords  in  a  speech 
of  great  power,  a  few  paragraphs  of  which,  with  your  per- 
mission, Mr.  President,  I  will  read  to  the  board.  It  was 
during  a  debate  on  education. 

The  Marquis  of  Lansdowne  intimated  that  the  govern- 
ment had  seriously  considered  the  practicability  of  a  plan 
which  had  been  proposed,  but  had  given  it  up  on  account 
of  the  religious  dissensions  which  stood  in  the  way. 

Lord  Brougham  exposed  ^fchis  mischievous  odium  theologi- 
cum  very  happily. 

"  But  why,"  said  he,  "  could  not  such  a  system  be  adopted  ? 
He  could  tell  their  lordships  frankly,  very  frankly  \  it  was  because 
they  had  two  classes  of  the  community,  for  both  of  which  he  had  the 
most  profound  and  inviolable  respect,  he  meant  the  members  of  the 
church  and  members  of  dissenting  congregations,  each  in  their  sphere, 
great  promoters  of  education,  and  deeply  interested  in  the  training  of 
youth.  He  was  not  speaking  of  the  clergy,  but  of  the  community, 
although,  the  clergy  were  most  sedulously  bent  on  the  promotion 
of  education.  But  there  was  one  thing  which  both  the  church  and 
the  dissenters  preferred,  and  that  was  controversy,  which  made 
them  neglect  the  great  object  of  education,  and  made  them  prefer, 
more  than  anything  else,  victory.  They  lost  sight  of  the  main 
object  in  the  glory  of  the  victory.  That  was  what  he  universally 
found.  The  church  would  not  have  any  system  which  was  so  com- 
prehensive as  not  to  allow  of  any  clerical  interference  ;  the  dis- 
senters would  not  have  any  system  that  allowed  the  least  interference 
on  the  part  of  the  church ;  and,  therefore,  unhappily  between  the 
two,  education  went  more  or  less  to  the  wall." 

Since  the  delivery  of  this  speech,  various  plans  have 
been  proposed,  especially  one  by  Mr.  Cobden,  dividing  the 
kingdom  into  districts,  appointing  in  each  nine  commis- 
sioners of  education,  no  two  of  which  should  be  of  the 
same  religious  opinions ;  but  all  have  failed,  for  the 
reasons  given  by  Lord  Brougham;  and  the  work  of 
national  education  stands  still. 


372  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

Such  have  been  the  effects  of  attempting  to  unite 
religious  and  secular  education  in  England,  and  against 
which  I  wish,  if  possible,  to  guard  our  beloved  university. 

My  desire  is  to  open  its  gates  as  wide  as  possible,  that 
students  of  all  denominations  may  come  in  and  share  the 
great  advantages  it  affords,  without  distinction  of  sect  or 
party. 

The  picture  I  have  drawn  so  feebly,  is  no  fancy  sketch, 
but  a  similar  state  of  things  may  arise  amongst  ourselves 
sooner  than  we  anticipate. 

I  have  already  said,  that  I  consider  the  Plummer  as 
superseding  the  Hollis  professorship;  and  when  I  reflect 
how  generously  that  noble  benefactor,  Hollis,  bestowed 
his  money  upon  the  college,  (commencing  in  1719 
and  ending  only  with  his  life,)  having  given  it  a 
sum  valued  at  six  thousand  pounds,  (a  vast  amount  in 
those  days,)  I  cannot  help  feeling  that  a  professorship 
bearing  his  venerated  name  is  the  last  one  which  should 
be  permitted  to  fall  into  abeyance,  or  be  superseded  by 
another. 

I  would  not  express  any  opinion  upon  the  right  or 
propriety  of  appropriating  funds,  not  otherwise  disposed 
of,  to  increase  the  income  of  some  particular  professorship, 
but,  if  this  be  ever  done,  I  can  conceive  of  no  case  which 
has  such  claims  as  the  Hollis  professorship. 

When  I  consider,  too,  the  noble  liberality  of  Hollis,  so 
that,  when  preparing  the  rules  for  his  professorship,  he 
required  no  subscription  to  a  creed,  nor  any  confession  of 
faith,  except  that  "the  Scriptures  of  the  Old  and  New 
Testament  are  the  only  rule  of  faith  and  practice ; "  and 
that,  though  he  was  a  Baptist  himself,  all  he  asked  was 
that  a  person's  being  one  might  not  operate  to  his  exclu- 
sion as  a  candidate  for  the  professorship,  I  cannot  express 
the  admiration  I  feel  for  the  character  of  such  a  Christian  ; 
and  I  have  long  thought  that  to  have  appointed  one  of 


THE  PLUMMER  PROFESSORSHIP.  373 

his  own  sect  to  the  professorship  he  established,  (had  it 
been  deemed  proper  by  the  corporation,)  would  have 
been  a  most  appropriate  tribute  to  the  universal  respect 
and  esteem  which  every  one  has  for  his  memory. 

Mr.  President,  I  would,  on  no  account,  find  fault  with 
the  corporation  for  the  interpretation  they  have-  put 
upon  the  words  of  Miss  Plummer's  will  to  establish  a 
professorship  "upon  the  Philosophy  of  the  Heart"  I  can 
easily  imagine  their  task  to  iiave  been  anything  but  an 
easy  one,  and  that,  had  the  duty  been  assigned  to  seven 
different  persons  having  no  communication  with  one 
another,  each  might  have  produced  several  pages  of  stat- 
utes or  rules  having  nothing  in  common,  and  each  differ- 
ing from  the  other.  I  will  add  that  it  is  with  much 
regret  I  find  the  words  have  been  construed  in  such  a 
manner  that  I  cannot  vote  in  the  way  I  could  have 
wished. 

After  due  deliberation  and  reflection,  is  the  necessity  of 
making  this  appointment  so  urgent  as  some  have  sup- 
posed? And  here  I  cannot  avoid  expressing  the  surprise 
which  has  filled  me  when  I  have  heard  some  persons 
speak  of  the  religious  and  moral  condition  of  the  students 
at  Cambridge,  lamenting  that  there  were  "no  religious 
influences  in  operation  there."  No  religious  influences  at 
Cambridge  !  Is  that  fiction,  or  is  it  fact  ?  Are  there  not 
religious  exercises  in  the  chapel  twice  a  day  ?  Is  there 
not  divine  service  on  Sundays  also  in  the  chapel  ?  Do 
not  the  students  use  the  works  of  Paley,  Butler,  and 
other  writers  on  religion  or  morals  as  text-books  ?  And  do 
not  their  teachers  always  impress  upon  them,  when  they 
can,  the  necessity  of  religion  and  good  morals? 

There  are  some  persons  of  such  looks  and  manners,  you 
cannot  come  into  their  presence  without  feeling  that  they 
exercise  a  religious  and  salutary  influence  over  you ;  and 
I  have  always  felt  that  the  president  of  the  university 


374  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

was  one  of  that  number,  and  I  doubt  not  many  others 
have  had  that  feeling,  and  the  students  also,  whose  con- 
duct, at  the  present  time,  I  am  firmly  convinced,  would 
bear  a  favorable  comparison  with  that  of  any  former 
period  in  the  history  of  the  college. 

We  ought  to  think  of  the  unruly  part  of  the  students, 
(and  there  will  be  some  such  in  every  college,)  as  Burke 
said  during  the  French  revolution  the  people  of  England 
should  think  of  certain  persons  in  that  country,  "Because," 
says  he,  "a  parcel  of  grasshoppers,  on  a  summer's  day 
under  a  fern,  make  a  whole  field  resound  with  their 
importunate  clink,  whilst  hundreds  of  noble  cattle  under 
the  British  oak  chew  the  cud  and  are  silent,  we  must 
not  think  that  they  are  the  only  tenants  of  the  field." 

No  doubt  there  is  room  for  improvement  there,  and  the 
attempt,  on  the  part  of  the  corporation,  to  improve  the 
moral  condition  of  those  entrusted  to  their  care  is  praise- 
worthy in  the  highest  degree.  I  can  also  easily  believe 
that  Mr.  Huntington  is  eminently  qualified  for  the  office 
it  is  proposed  to  assign  him ;  but  I  cannot  permit  this 
consideration  to  influence  me  so  far  as  to  give  my  vote 
in  favor  of  establishing  this  new  professorship,  which 
afterwards  we  may  have  reason  to  regret. 

The  moral  propriety  of  separating  secular  from  relig- 
ious instruction  is  gaining  advocates,  I  think,  everywhere. 
Some  time  ago  it  received  an  unexpected  sanction,  as  it 
were,  from  the  other  world,  in  a  posthumous  declaration 
of  the  late  Dr.  Chalmers  in  favor  of  the  separation. 

It  required  some  moral  courage  to  express  such  an 
opinion,  in  Scotland,  too,  a  country  in  which,  I  remember, 
some  years  since,  that  the  works  of  Sir  Walter  Scott  were 
voted  out  of  a  circulating  library  at  Aberdeen,  as  of  an 
irreligious  tendency  on  account  of  the  manner  in  which 
he  had  written  concerning  the  Covenanters,  nor  is  it  prob- 
able Dr.  Chalmers  would  have  ever  expressed  such  an 


THE  PLUMMER  PROFESSORSHIP.  375 

opinion  had  it  not  been  forced  upon  him  by  the  convic- 
tion that  otherwise  the  work  of  education  would  continue 
to  stand  still.  No  one,  I  believe,  dared  to  apply  to  him 
the  epithet  of  infidel,  though  it  had  been  applied  to  so 
many  others  who  had  ventured  to  advocate  the  same 
doctrine. 

Should  there  appear  to  be  any  inconsistency  on  my 
part  in  favoring  the  reestablishment  of  the  Hollis,  whilst 
I  oppose  the  establishment  of  the  Plummer  professorship, 
I  would  remark  that  many  reasons  might  be  assigned 
in  favor  of  an  ancient  professorship  which  formed  a  part 
of  the  college  for  so  many  years,  which  do  not  apply 
to  the  one  last  named  ;  but  they  are  so  easily  perceived, 
it  is  not  necessary  to  name  them. 

There  are  other  suggestions,  Mr.  President,  I  might 
make  in  favor  of  the  view  I  have  felt  constrained  to  take 
of  the  question  before  us,  but  I  have  already  occupied 
too  much  time,  and  will  conclude  by  again  expressing  my 
regret  that  I  cannot  cast  my  vote  in  favor  of  the 
proposition  laid  before  this  board  by  the  corporation. 


CONDUCT    OF    THE    PEESS. 

REMARKS  MADE  AT  THE  ANNUAL  MEETING  OF  THE  NEW  YORK  AND  NEW  HAVEN 
RAILROAD  COMPANY,  HELD  AT  NEW  HAVEN,  MAY    10,   1855. 

MR.  PRESIDENT, — It  gives  me  great  pleasure  to  meet 
you  and  our  other  fellow  stockholders  once  more  in  this 
good  city  of  New  Haven,  not  upon  any  extraordinary 
call  of  the  directors  or  shareholders,  as  happened  last 
year,  but  at  our  annual  meeting,  as  prescribed  in  the 
charter. 

I  do  not  know  that  there  is  any  particular  reason  why  I 
should  make  any  demand  upon  your  time  and  patience 
upon  this  occasion,  but,  as  some  too  partial  friends  have 
suggested  that  my  silence  might  be  misunderstood,  I  pro- 
pose to  make  a  few  observations,  to  which  your  attention 
is  respectfully  invited.  You  may  probably  recollect  that, 
when  we  assembled  here  on  the  eighth  of  November  last, 
it  devolved  upon  me,  as  chairman  of  a  committee,  chosen 
in  New  York,  to  make  a  full  and  particular  report  upon 
the  affairs  of  the  New  York  and  New  Haven  Railroad, 
past,  present,  and  future ;  but  that,  for  want  of  time,  it  was 
not  forthcoming. 

It  was  perceived  that  a  new  board  of  directors  would 
probably  be  chosen  soon  ;  that  then  a  thorough  examina- 
tion would  have  to  be  made,  and  could  be  prosecuted  under 
their  direction  at  the  office  in  New  York,  and  without  the 
large  expenditure  that  the  investigation  first  called  for 
must  have  cost. 


CONDUCT  OF  THE  PRESS.  377 

By  the  printed  report  of  the  president  and  directors  just 
published,  you  will  have  seen  how  thorough  and  searching 
their  examination  must  have  been,  and  what  a  full  state- 
ment of  facts  they  have  been  able  to  lay  before  us,  espe- 
cially as  relates  to  the  stupendous  fraud  of  Robert  Schuyler, 
which  seems  to  increase  in  magnitude  as  the  investigation 
proceeds. 

The  results  at  which  the  directors  have  arrived,  are 
deduced  from  an  examination  of  the  books  of  the  company, 
and  answer  some  of  the  resolutions  which  were  passed  at 
the  meeting  in  New  York  in  October  last,  but  there  are 
others  which  could  be  answered  in  a  satisfactory  manner, 
only  by  having  the  power  to  send  for  persons  and  papers 
under  the  authority  of  a  subpoena,  which  the  directors  had 
no  right  to  use.  Further  important  disclosures  may,  per- 
haps, be  made  during  the  trial  of  cases  now  in  progress  in 
the  courts  at  New  York. 

It  gives  me  great  pleasure  to  state  that,  so  far  as  I  have 
been  able  to  ascertain  the  sentiments  of  the  numerous 
stockholders,  (whose  proxies  I  hold,)  they  highly  approve 
of  the  injunction  obtained  on  the  30th  of  January  last,  to 
prevent  the  holders  of  the  fraudulent  certificates  commenc- 
ing any  new  suits,  (which  would  have  been  attended  with 
great  expense  to  the  company,)  and  obliging  them  all  to 
come  in  under  the  general  bill  of  interpleader,  prepared 
by  our  distinguished  and  vigilant  counsel,  Messrs.  Noyes, 
Powers,  and  Tallmadge. 

With  respect  to  the  course  adopted  here  in  November, 
in  voting  not  to  assume  the  spurious  shares,  or  to  appoint 
a  committee  of  compromise,  I  think  I  may  safely  say  that, 
whatever  doubts  there  may  have  been  in  the  minds  of 
some  persons,  upon  the  expediency  and  justice  of  the 
decision  then  taken,  there  is  now  almost  a  universal  con- 
sent amongst  people  of  reflection,  everywhere,  that  the 
plan  adopted  was  just,  honorable,  and  the  only  one  likely 

48 


378  WORKS  OF  S.  D  BRADFORD. 

to  lead  to  any  satisfactory  result ;  that  the  idea  of  a  com- 
promise was  impracticable,  if  not  degrading  and  Utopian  ; 
and  that,  if  there  ever  was  a  case  in  which  an  appeal  to 
the  judiciary  was  imperatively  called  for,  this  was  that 
case.  I  will  add,  that  amongst  all  the  stockholders 
in  New  England,  with  whom  I  have  conversed  on  the 
subject,  only  one  has  suggested  an  adjustment  by 
compromise. 

We  were  told,  you  may  perhaps  remember,  at  both  our 
meetings,  by  certain  gentlemen,  that,  if  we  would  only 
assume  the  fraudulent  shares,  (as  the  stockholders  in  the 
Parker  Vein  Coal  Company,  and  the  Vermont  Central 
Railroad  had  done,  upon  discovering  the  frauds  of  which 
they  had  been  the  victims,)  all  our  difficulties  would  dis- 
appear, we  should  regain  the  confidence  of  the  public, 
and  our  stock  would  rise  to  a  high  figure  in  the  market. 

How  this  prediction  has  been  falsified  in  the  cases  cited, 
I  need  not  relate.  The  prices  at  which  such  scrip  is  sell- 
ing, speak  in  a  language  which  none  can  misunderstand, 
and  warn  us,  in  a  manner  we  should  never  forget,  that  the 
advice  of  interested  parties  should  always  be  received  with 
great  caution,  and  be  well  considered  before  adopting  it. 
The  last  quotation  I  have  seen  of  Vermont  Central,  was 
two  dollars  and  eighty-seven  and  a  half  cents  a  share ! 
Corporations,  deeply  indebted,  and  not  knowing  which 
way  to  turn,  may  feign  to  act  with  liberality  in  assuming 
debts  which  legally  they  do  not  owe  ;  but  they  should 
always  be  just  before  they  are  generous,  and  pay  their  old 
debts  before  they  incur  new  ones.  The  New  York  and 
New  Haven  Railroad  Company  have  no  occasion  or  desire 
to  buy  a  credit  on  such  conditions. 

You  may,  perhaps,  remember  also,  that  a  day  or  two 
previous  to  our  meeting  at  the  Apollo  Rooms,  in  New 
York,  there  was  a  public  notice  given  in  the  New  York 
Herald,  that  a  numerous  committee  had  been  appointed 


CONDUCT  OF  THE  PEESS.  379 

by  the  Board  of  Brokers,  "  to  fight  the  New  York  and 
New  Haven  Railroad  Company/'  with  ample  funds,  which 
had  been  provided  for  the  purpose. 

It  was  not  particularly  stated  in  what  manner  the  con- 
test was  to  be  carried  on,  whether  through  the  press,  or 
the  method  usual  in  such  cases,  the  courts  of  law.  The 
notice  was  no  doubt  official,  and,  from  the  violence  and 
malignity  of  the  newspaper  communications,  which 
appeared  between  our  first  meeting  in  New  York  and 
that  which  took  place  on  the  eighth  of  November,  at  New 
Haven,  it  would  now  appear  that  the  press  was  the  prin- 
cipal organ  selected  for  carrying  on  the  war,  together 
with  the  circulation  of  certain  legal  opinions  which  had 
been  purchased  for  the  same  purpose,  and  sent  broadcast 
through  New  York  and  Connecticut.  It  happened,  how- 
ever, that,  soon  after  the  signal  defeat  which  the  holders 
of  spurious  shares  met  with  at  New  Haven,  little  was  said 
upon  the  subject  in  the  newspapers,  and  many  persons 
supposed  that  the  firing  had  ceased  for  want  of  ammunition, 
or  that  they  had  changed  their  opinions  as  to  the  validity 
of  their  shares.  Recently,  however,  the  attacks  have  been; 
repeated,  with  increased  virulence ;  and  I  presume  you. 
must  all  remember  the  pathetic  appeals,  which  were  made 
a  few  weeks  ago  in  the  Herald,  to  some  of  "  the  prominent 
merchants  and  citizens  of  New  York "  who  were  share- 
holders, to  stop  the  bill  of  interpleader,  and  to  force  a 
compromise ;  and  you  must  also  have  observed  what  a 
withering  reproof  they  received  in  the  perfect  apathy  of 
the  stockholders,  and  in  their  determination  not  to- 
interfere. 

It  is  painful  to  paint  such  a  portrait  of  the  press  as  it- 
exists  in  our  country,  because,  with  all  its  defects,  we  are 
so  much  indebted  to  it  for  our  civil  and  religious  rights.. 
Every  one  knows  what  good  it  is  capable  of  achieving 
when  guided  by  justice  and  truth,  and  that,  fortunately,. 


380  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

in  the  minds  of  respectable  persons,  it  signally  defeats  its 
own  object  when  it  becomes  venal,  false,  and  malicious. 

If,  however,  when  a  case  involving  a  large  pecuniary 
sum  is  soon  to  be  acted  upon  in  the  courts  of  law,  the 
custom  is  growing  up  in  New  York  (as  is  daily  asserted) 
of  prejudging  it  by  means  of  newspaper  communica- 
tions, by  personal  attacks  of  the  most  malignant  character 
upon  one  side  or  the  other,  with  the  intention  of  influenc- 
ing not  only  public  opinion  at  large,  but  the  judges  and 
juries  also  who  are  to  try  the  cause,  I  say,  if  such  a  prac- 
tice is  to  be  tolerated,  we  may  retain  the  forms  of  jus- 
tice, but  the  spirit  will  leave  us,  and  our  boasted  freedom 
will  be  only  a  name.  It  cannot  fail,  unless  reprobated 
and  put  down,  to  deteriorate  the  character  of  the  Bench, 
of  which  we  have  long  been  so  justly  proud,  and  to 
which  we  are  all  so  much  indebted,  for  no  country  can 
have  any  great  reason  to  complain  when  the  judges  are 
governed  by  the  principles  of  truth  and  justice,  and 
when  the  law  is  equitably  administered.  It  was  the 
purity  of  the  ermine,  which  probably  preserved  England 
from  a  revolution,  previous  to  the  passage  of  the  Reform 
Bill  in  1832 ;  for  a  people  will  endure  a  great  inequality 
in  their  civil  rights  so  long  as  they  can  look  up  to  the 
judges  on  the  bench  as  equally  the  defenders  of  the 
rich  and  the  poor,  the  high  and  the  humble.  May  our 
judges  ever  remain  just  and  true  men,  so  that  each  may 
be  able  to  exclaim,  in  the  words  of  the  poet, 

"  Welcome  business,  welcome  strife, 
Welcome  the  cares  of  ermined  life  ; 
The  visage  wan,  the  purblind  sight, 
The  toil  by  day,  the  lamp  by  night, 
The  tedious  forms,  the  solemn  prate, 
The  pert  dispute,  the  dull  debate, 
The  drowsy  bench,  the  babbling  hall, — 
For  thee,  fair  Justice,  welcome  all !  " 

What  I  have  said  of  the  press  in  general  will  not  apply 


CONDUCT  OF  THE  PRESS.  381 

to  all  the  public  journals,  for  the  Journal  of  Commerce,  and 
a  few  others,  have  pursued  a  course,  as  respects  this 
contest,  of  which  no  one  could  justly  complain. 

And  now,  for  a  moment,  let  us  inquire  what  have  the 
shareholders  of  the  New  York  and  New  Haven  Railroad 
Company  done  to  call  down  upon  them  the  denuncia- 
tions of  the  press  ?  They  have  charged  Robert  Schuy- 
ler  with  forgery ;  with  procuring  money  upon  false  pre- 
tences ;  and  with  having  exceeded  his  power  as  transfer 
agent,  but  in  a  manner  not  binding  upon  the  corporation. 
They  have  lost,  by  their  connection  with  him,  at  a  moder- 
ate estimate,  a  million  of  dollars,  for  it  has  been  computed, 
by  a  competent  engineer,  that  his  having  accepted  the 
road,  before  it  was  properly  completed,  has  probably  cost 
the  company  half  a  million,  not  to  mention  other  heavy 
losses,  as  is  proved  by  the  books.  Who  will  deny  these 
charges?  In  consequence  of  Mr.  Schuyler's  having  left 
the  company,  with  a  floating  debt  of  four  hundred  and 
forty-three  thousand  dollars,  instead  of  one  hundred  and 
forty  thousand  dollars,  (as  stated  by  him  on  the  eleventh 
of  May,  1854}  they  have  still  a  debt  of  one  hundred  and 
twenty-six  thousand  dollars,  and  yet  these  holders  of 
spurious  certificates  turn  round  and  abuse  the  company, 
because  they  will  not  acknowledge  them,  and  speak  of 
them  as  retaining  dividends  which  should  be  distributed, 
when  they  ought  to  know  there  is  no  money  on  hand  to 
divide,  nor  is  there  likely  to  be  any  soon.  They  know 
they  cannot  be  admitted  as  stockholders,  without  violat- 
ing the  charter,  even  if  they  had  any  right  to  be  so 
admitted,  and  they  confess  it  would  reduce  the  value  of 
the  shares  to  sixty  cents  upon  the  dollar ;  and  yet  the 
Mechanics  Bank  of  New  York,  in  its  action  against  the 
company,  have  demanded  payment  at  the  rate  of  ninety- 
four  cents  on  the  dollar  of  the  spurious  stock,  being 


382  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

upwards  of  fifty  per  cent,  more  than  the  genuine  shares 
are  worth,  if  the  principle  the  bank  contends  for,  prevails. 

Unjustifiable  and  disgraceful,  however,  as  the  assaults 
have  been,  I  am  glad  the  company  have  preserved  a 
dignified  silence,  trusting  to  the  justice  of  their  cause; 
and  I  am  not  aware  of  the  expenditure  of  a  single  dollar 
on  their  part  to  influence  public  opinion  one  way  or  the 
other.  They  have  acted,  from  first  to  last,  upon  the 
principle, — "  Virtus  tutissima  cassis" 

They  have  appealed  to  the  established  tribunals  of  the 
country,  not  doubting  that  they  will  decide  the  question 
at  issue  according  to  justice  and  the  law. 

The  principle  involved  in  the  decision,  whatever  it  may 
be,  is  second,  probably,  in  importance  to  none  which  has 
ever  before  exercised  the  legal  acumen  of  the  Bench,  and 
no  doubt  they  so  consider  it.  If  decided  against  the 
company,  no  prudent  man  will  ever  invest  again  in  a 
corporation  of  any  kind.  He  will  also  dispose  of  any 
property  he  may  hold  thus  situated  with  the  least  possible 
delay ;  but  a  decision  drawing  after  it  such  consequences 
I  trust  we  are  never  destined  to  deplore. 

Mr.  President,  I  am  gratified  to  see  around  me  such  a 
general  attendance  of  stockholders,  and  I  hope  this  will 
continue  not  only  during  the  difficulties  under  which  we 
labor  at  present,  but  also  when  those  embarrassments 
shall  have  passed  away.  I  have  not  attended  the  annual 
meetings  as  I  should  have  done.  It  is  true  I  had  great 
fears  for  the  safety  of  the  corporation  for  several  years 
before  the  forgery  and  escape  of  Schuyler  were  dis- 
covered, and  communicated  them  to  other  shareholders. 
I  had  no  personal  acquaintance  with  the  president,  but 
it  required  very  little  foresight  to  perceive  that  he  must 
soon  break  down,  with  four  railroads  upon' his  back; 
and  then  I  hoped  there  would  have  been  an  end  to  his 


CONDUCT  OF  THE  PRESS.  383 

mismanagement  of  our  property.  I  was  active,  also,  in 
cooperation  with  Mr.  Henry  Young,  of  New  York,  and 
other  stockholders,  in  November,  1849,  in  the  attempt  to 
get  rid  of  him;  but  we  were  outvoted,  principally  by 
proxies  in  the  hands  of  Schuyler  and  his  particular 
friends,  and  so  his  power  was  prolonged  until  these 
embarrassments  have  come  upon  the  company. 

It  has  been  said,  by  a  profound  moralist,  that  no  man 
becomes  a  villain  all  at  once,  and  by  that  rule  it  is 
reasonable  to  suppose  that  Schuyler  commenced  his 
nefarious  practices  long  before  he  became  connected  with 
the  New  York  and  New  Haven  Railroad  Company,  and 
probably  continued  them  during  the  eight  years  he  acted 
as  president.  The  annual  meetings,  I  have  heard,  were 
not  well  attended ;  and  thus  we  may  all  learn  a  lesson, 
that  it  is  by  vigilance  only  we  can  maintain  our  liberty  or 
our  prosperity. 

Permit  me,  before  I  take  my  seat,  to  thank  you,  fellow 
stockholders,  for  the  patience  with  which  you  have  listened 
to  my  remarks  upon  the  present  and  upon  prior  occa- 
sions. I  believe  it  is  known  to  most  of  you  already,  that 
I  was  no  volunteer  in  the  war  now  being  carried  on 
between  the  company  and  the  holders  of  the  fraudulent 
certificates  of  shares.  The  laurels  to  be  gained  by  a  con- 
test with  Wall  street,  are  not  of  a  character  which  my 
ambition  has  ever  coveted.  You  may  remember,  perhaps, 
the  report  of  the  Schuyler  directors,  which  was  read  at 
the  Apollo  rooms,  to  which  was  annexed  the  opinion  of 
two  most  eminent  counsel  of  New  York,  that  the  company 
were  in  no  way  liable  for  the  fraudulent  issues;  but  when, 
after  reading  the  report,  the  president  rose,  and  said  he 
considered  it  was  a  case  for  compromise,  I  could  remain 
silent  no  longer.  Although  a  stranger  to  almost  every 
one  in  the  room,  my  remarks  were  received  with  favor, 
and,  from  that  time  to  the  present,  I  have  done  what  I 


384  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

could  to  keep  the  company  out  of  the  hands  of  the  Philis- 
tines ;  and  have  labored,  that  equal  justice  should  be  done 
to  all.  My  course  on  that  occasion  was  also  approved  by 
the  shareholders  in  Boston  and  its  vicinity,  so  that,  at  the 
next  meeting,  without  any  solicitation  on  my  part,  they 
sent  me  their  proxies  to  vote  upon  nearly  two  thousand 
shares. 

I  have  reason  to  believe  that  a  legal  decision  will  be 
given  in  the  suit  of  the  Mechanic's  Bank,  in  the  course  of 
a  few  weeks,  by  the  Superior  Court  of  New  York,  consist- 
ing of  six  judges,  presided  over  by  that  distinguished  jurist, 
Judge  Oakley ;  and  I  trust  that,  in  due  time,  the  New 
York  and  New  Haven  Railroad  may  be  extricated  from 
all  its  difficulties,  and  become,  not  only  one  of  the  best  con- 
ducted, but  also  one  of  the  most  profitable  thoroughfares 
in  the  country. 


CHARACTER   OF   MRS.   GREENWOOD. 

[We  published,  a  few  days  since,  a  notice  of  a  venerated  and  much-beloved  lady, 
and  from  another  friend  we  have  received  the  following. — Boston  Daily  Advertiser.] 

DIED,  in  this  city,  on  Tuesday,  June  5th,  Mrs.  Mary 
Langdon  Greenwood,  widow  of  the  late  W.  P.  Greenwood, 
and  mother  of  the  late  distinguished  divine,  F.  W.  P. 
Greenwood. 

Several  days  have  elapsed  since  the  papers  announced 
the  decease  of  this  excellent  woman,  and,  on  Thursday  last, 
her  remains  were  conveyed  to  their  final  resting-place, 
at  Mount  Auburn,  followed  by  many  of  her  attached 
relatives  and  friends.  It  was  on  a  summer's  day,  when  all 
nature  was  radiant  with  beauty  and  loveliness,  and  seemed 
to  rejoice  amidst  the  richness  of  the  verdure,  and  the 
fragrance  of  the  blossoms  and  flowers,  which,  by  contrast, 
seemed,  if  possible,  to  increase  the  sorrow  which  weighed 
so  heavily  upon  the  hearts  of  the  mourners.  The  country, 
on  some  accounts,  appeared  more  lovely  than  ever  before; 
as  if  nature  intended  to  make  amends  for  the  length  and 
severity  of  the  last  tedious  winter.  Autumn,  towards  its 
close,  would  have  been  a  more  appropriate  emblem  of  the 
scene;  for  then  the  decay  of  vegetation,  and  the  falling  of 
the  leaves,  are  significant  of  death,  and  remind  us  all  that 
"  our  life  is  a  shadow  which  continueth  not." 

Every  thing  without  indicated  joy  and  happiness ;  every 
thing  within,  that  a  beloved  relative  and  friend  had 
departed  for  another  and  better  world.  Every  eye  was 
moistened  with  tears,  whilst  every  tongue  spoke  of  the 

49 


386  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

uncommon  virtues  and  excellences  which  distinguished 
the  character  of  the  deceased ;  and  who  can  wonder  at 
this,  that  ever  enjoyed  the  privilege  of  her  acquaintance, 
or  was  favored  with  her  confidence  and  regard?  To 
describe  her  domestic  life  and  character  would  be  to  pre- 
sent a  portrait  of  most  of  the  virtues  which  are  most  val- 
ued and  esteemed  in  the  world.  Benevolent  to  a  degree 
seldom  witnessed,  she  was  never  so  happy  as  when  she 
could  do  a  kindness  to  another.  Hospitable  in  the  largest 
sense  of  the  word,  she  was  always  gratified  when  she  could 
receive  and  entertain  her  friends.  She  was  a  noble  speci- 
men of  a  woman ;  such  as  is  but  seldom  seen,  and  can 
never  be  forgotten.  Nature  had  endowed  her  not  only 
with  one  of  the  kindest  of  hearts,  but  also  with  remark- 
able mental  powers,  so  that  her  conversation  instructed 
whilst  it  delighted  the  hearer.  In  early  life,  she  evinced 
a  decided  talent  as  a  writer,  especially  as  a  discriminat- 
ing reviewer  of  the  compositions  of  others ;  and,  had  her 
domestic  occupations  permitted,  it  is  not  doubted  she 
might  have  gained  an  enviable  reputation  as  an  author. 
Her  reading  was  extensive,  and  there  was  a  discrimina- 
tion about  her  mind,  which  is  found  but  in  few  persons. 
Her  conversation  was  various,  discursive,  and  highly  enter- 
taining, but  always  marked  by  wisdom  and  goodness.  Her 
perception  was  quick  and  discerning,  and  this  continued 
to  the  last.  The  body  only  seemed  enfeebled  by  disease, 
and  not  the  mind;  for  the  decay  of  physical  strength,  and 
the  want  of  her  usual  activity,  seemed  rather  to  increase 
the  powers  of  her  mind.  Her  interest  in  the  happiness 
and  welfare  of  others  appeared  to  become  greater  as  her 
own  strength  and  health  continued  to  fail ;  and  she 
thought  more  of  others  at  the  time  when  niost  people 
think  more  and  more  of  themselves.  Nothing  could 
exceed  the  cares  she  manifested  for  the  happiness  of  her 
children  and  grandchildren;  and  their  love  and  attach- 


CHARACTER  OF  MARY  LANGDON  GREENWOOD.          387 

ment  for  her  seemed  always  in  proportion  to  the  kindness 
conferred,  and  gratified  her  much.  Her  manner  towards 
the  young  proved  that  she  had  explored  every  avenue  to 
the  youthful  heart. 

It  has  been  said,  by  a  beautiful  German  writer,  that 
u  a  contemplative,  meditative,  and  evectivelife  is  the  most 
exalted  state  of  existence,  and  that  it  is  only  in  old  age  it 
can  be  fully  enjoyed ;  as  at  an  earlier  period  it  is  con- 
stantly coming  into  collision  With  our  necessities  and  active 
duties."  Our  departed  friend  was  a  striking  example 
of  the  correctness  of  this ;  remark  and,  if  it  be  true  that  it 
sometimes  requires  a  hundred  years  for  the  oak  to  come 
to  perfection,  it  may  also  seem  sometimes  to  require  a 
period  of  nearly  the  same  length  to  produce  such  a  woman 
as  Mary  Langdon  Greenwood. 

"  The  spirit  increases  in  perfection,"  says  Comaro,  "as 
the  body  grows  older ;  "  which  was  also  illustrated  in  her 
life;  and  if  the  theory  of  a  recent  French  writer  be  true, 
that  "  the  second  period  of  old  age  begins  at  eighty-five," 
it  may  be  safely  affirmed  that,  in  this  case,  the  mind  was 
fully  equal  to  another  term,  and  required  only  a  new 
body.  Even  her  memory  was  quick  and  retentive  to  the 
last.  Her  countenance  was  full  of  intelligence,  and  very 
pleasing;  her  figure  was  noble  and  commanding ;  and  the 
soul,  the  spirit  within,  was  worthy  of  the  form  which 
contained  it. 

It  has  pleased  a  wise  and  just,  but  merciful  Providence, 
to  take  her  from  us  in  a  good  old  age,  honored  and 
esteemed  by  all;  but  those  who  have  been  benefited  by 
her  counsels  and  example;  the  poor,  who  for  so  many 
years  have  shared  her  bounty ;  the  young,  who  have  been 
guided  and  cheered  by  her  wisdom  and  advice ;  her 
bereaved  children,  grandchildren,  and  other  relatives  and 
friends  who  have  always  taken  so  much  delight  in  her 
society,  and  to  whom  she  was  so  much  attached ;  in  short, 


388  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

every  one  who  had  the  good  fortune  of  knowing  her  will 
never  forget  the  exemplary  Christian  and  friend,  whom 
they  have  lost.  Her  surviving  relatives  may  think  that 
such  various  excellences  of  character  require  no  mon- 
ument of  brass  or  marble;  and  when  those  who  knew 
her  in  life  shall  recognize  her  resting-place  in  Mount 
Auburn,  they  may  be  reminded,  perhaps,  of  one  of  the 
apothegms  of  Lord  Bacon,  who  relates  that, "  when  Cato  the 
elder,  at  a  time  when  many  of  the  Romans  had  statues 
erected  in  their  honor,  was  asked  by  one  in  a  kind  of  won- 
der, why  he  had  none,  he  answered,  'He  had  much  rather 
men  should  ask  and  wonder  why  he  had  no  statue,  than 

why  he  had  a  statue.' " 

s.  D.  B. 


VINDICATION  OF   THE  OVERSEERS  OF 
HARVARD  COLLEGE. 

[Ax  the  meeting,  Thursday  afternoon,, of  the  overseers  of  Harvard  College,  while 
the  report  of  the  committee,  recommending  a  concurrence  with  the  corporation  in 
the  establishment  of  a  new  professorship  in  the  Law  School  was  under  considera- 
tion, Samuel  D.  Bradford,  Esq.,  a  member  of  the  board,  made  the  following  remarks 
in  vindication  of  the  action  of  the  overseers  upon  the  nomination  of  Judge  Loring. 

Boston  Atlas.] 

MR.  PRESIDENT, — I  rise  with  some  reluctance  to  offer  a 
few  observations  upon  a  subject  not  now  before  this  board, 
but  upon  which  so  much  has  been  said  by  the  press  and 
the  public  generally,  that  I  may  almost  claim  a  portion 
of  your  time  and  attention  for  the  sake  of  making  a 
personal  explanation. 

I  allude  to  the  rejection  of  the  nomination  of  Edward 
Greely  Loring,  Esq.,  as  lecturer  in  the  Law  School  at  Cam- 
bridge, on  the  15th  of  February  last,  concerning  which 
such  bitter  complaints  have  been  made,  and  such  unworthy 
motives  imputed  to  the  members  of  this  board,  who  voted 
in  favor  of  that  rejection. 

As  one  of  that  number,  I  have  long  desired  an  occa- 
sion for  stating  the  motives  which  governed  my  vote, 
and  I  avail  myself  of  this  first  appropriate  opportunity 
of  doing  so. 

In  order,  however,  to  have  the  question  fully  under- 
stood, it  will  be  necessary  to  recite  briefly  the  history  of 
the  case,  and  to  begin  with  Mr.  Loring' s  first  connection 
with  the  Law  School,  which  dates  from  the  31st  of  Jan- 
uary, 1852,  on  which  day  it  appears  that,  at  a  meeting  of 
the  president  and  fellows,  the  following  votes  were  passed, 
viz. : 


390  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

Voted,  That  the  Honorable  Edward  Greely  Loring  be  appointed 
lecturer  in  the  Law  School  for  the  remainder  of  the  academical 
year. 

Voted,  That  the  compensation  of  the  law  lecturer  be  at  the 
rate  of  one  thousand  dollars  per  annum. 

This  nomination  was  presented  to  the  board  of  over- 
seers, at  their  meeting,  held  on  the  5th  of  February, 
1852,  and,  at  an  adjournment  of  said  meeting,  on  the 
19th  of  February,  1852,  was  confirmed,  and  was,  of  course, 
to  continue  for  a  little  over  six  months,  viz.,  to  the  end  of 
the  academical  year. 

When  this  appointment  was  first  announced,  nearly  four 
years  since,  it  would  be  no  exaggeration  to  say  that  it 
produced  not  a  little  surprise  amongst  some  of  the  mem- 
bers of  the  Suffolk  bar,  and  it  is  confidently  believed  that 
the  public  generally  regarded  it  as  one  of  doubtful 
expediency,  and  there  is  reason  to  believe,  also,  that 
many,  amongst  the  overseers  themselves,  were  in  great 
doubt  how  they  ought  to  vote. 

The  fact  of  his  being  judge  of  probate  for  the  county 
of  Suffolk  was  considered,  by  many,  as  a  weighty  objec- 
tion, and  this  may  have  made  a  deeper  impression  on  their 
minds  from  the  circumstance  that  there  had  been  one  or 
more  attempts  made  to  raise  his  salary,  as  judge  of  pro- 
bate, and  much  had  been  said,  in  the  public  journals  and 
before  the  legislature,  concerning  the  multifarious  and 
severe  duties  of  that  office ;  and  it  actually  appears  by 
the  record  that,  when  the  vote  was  finally  taken,  of  the 
thirty  members  of  the  board  who  were  present,  four 
abstained  from  voting,  one  cast  a  blank  vote,  and  seven 
voted  in  the  negative. 

Tf  the  nomination  had  been  for  a  longer  term,  or  had  it, 
after  a  discussion,  been  referred  to  a  committee,  it  may  be 
a  question  if  the  nomination  would  have  been  confirmed. 

On  the  23d  of  December,  1853,  Mr.  Loring  had  been 
law  lecturer  sixteen  months  after  his  term  had  expired, 


REJECTION  OF  EDWARD  GREELY  LORING.  391 

by  its  own  limitation,  and  now  a  second  time  our  attention 
is  called  to  him.  On  that  day  the  corporation  established 
a  new  professorship  in  the  Law  School,  and  elected  Mr. 
Loring  university  professor  of  law,  with  a  salary  of 
twenty-five  hundred  dollars  per  annum. 

These  proceedings  were  laid  before  the  overseers,  at 
their  meeting,  on  the  25th  of  January,  1854,  and  at  an 
adjourned  meeting,  on  the  9th  of  February  following,  the 
whole  subject,  on  the  suggestion  of  Mr.  Winthrop,  and  on 
the  motion  of  Mr.  Basse tt,  was  referred  to  a  committee 
appointed  by  Governor  Washburn,  then  in  the  chair. 

This  committee  made  a  very  elaborate  and  thorough 
examination  of  the  whole  subject,  and,  at  an  adjourned 
meeting  of  the  board,  held  the  9th  of  March,  1854,  pre- 
sented, through  Mr.  Bassett,  their  chairman,  a  very  able 
report,  and  unanimously  recommended  that  the  overseers 
should  not  concur  with  the  corporation. 

After  having  given  some  account  of  the  Law  School 
from  its  commencement,  and  of  the  course  of  education 
there,  and  made  some  remarks  on  the  question  of  the 
expediency  of  establishing  a  new  professorship,  they 
proceed  as  follows  : 

"  There  are  some  views  which  might  be  taken  with  regard  to 
the  proposition  to  establish  a  new  professorship,  if  that  proposi- 
tion stood  alone,  detached  from  other  propositions.  But  it  does 
not  stand  alone.  The  subject  of  a  professorship  comes  to  this 
board  with  a  professor  to  occupy  it,  already  elected  on  the  part  of 
the  corporation.  The  committee  have  felt  obliged  to  consider  the 
choice  of  trie  professor  as  bearing  directly  on  the  question  of  a 
professorship. 

"  Of  the  terms  and  conditions  upon  which  the  office  is  tendered  to> 
the  professor,  the  committee  must  freely  and  fully  speak,  and  they 
require  the  careful  attention  of  this  board. 

"  It  is  well  known  that  the  gentleman  elected  now  holds  the 
important  and  responsible  office  of  judge  of  probate  for  the  county  of 
Suffolk,  and  your  committee  have  been  informed  and  believe  that 


WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

he  is  to  continue  to  hold  that  office.  The  proposition,  therefore, 
is  to  establish  a  new  professorship,  with  a  gentleman  to  fill  the 
office,  who  is  charged  with  all  the  duties  and  responsibilities  of  the 
judge  of  probate  for  the  county  of  Suffolk. 

"  The  duties  of  the  judge  must  of  course  take  precedence  of  the 
duties  of  the  professor.  To  form  some  idea  of  the  extent  to  which 
the  duties  of  the  judge  will  interfere  with  the  duties  of  the  pro- 
fessor, it  may  be  needful  to  refer  briefly  and  generally  to  the  duties 
of  the  judge  of  probate  for  the  county  of  Suffolk. 

"  There  are,  within  his  jurisdiction,  one  hundred  and  forty  or  fifty 
thousand  inhabitants,  with  more  than  two  hundred  millions  of 
taxable  property.  The  annual  number  of  deaths  of  these  inhab- 
itants is  about  four  thousand,  and  the  number  of  estates  to  be  annu- 
ally settled  must  be  large.  For  several  years,  the  annual  amount 
of  property  entered  in  the  probate  of  Suffolk  is  believed  to  have 
been  about  seven  millions  of  dollars  ;  and,  the  last  year,  it  may 
probably  have  been  ten  millions.  The  amount  of  property,  there- 
fore, which  comes  within  the  jurisdiction  of  this  judge  is  immense, 
and,  in  regard  to  it,  he  has  great  duties  to  perform.  Grave  and 
difficult  questions  of  law  and  equity  are  to  be  examined  and  set- 
tled. Contested  matters  of  fact  are  to  be  patiently  heard  and 
decided.  Administrators,  and  guardians,  and  trustees,  are  to  be 
appointed  ;  bonds  to  a  great  amount  are  to  be  approved  and  taken  ; 
and  complicated  accounts  are  to  be  examined  and  allowed  ;  and 
there  is  a  great  amount  of  other  matters,  which  need  not  be 
particularly  mentioned. 

"  The  relation  of  the  judge  of  probate  to  the  inhabitants  is  pecu- 
liar, and  requires  that  he  should  be  within  its  jurisdiction,  and 
always  accessible  to  the  bereaved  and  friendless,  the  widows  and 
orphans  who  are  particularly  under  his  care  and  protection.  From 
this  brief  view,  it  would  seem  quite  apparent  that  the  duties  of  the 
judge  cannot  be  fully  and  faithfully  performed  without  much  time 
and  labor,  and  great  and  constant  care  and  watchfulness. 

"  But,  besides  matters  of  property,  the  judge  of  probate  has  juris- 
diction of  questions  deeply  affecting  personal  liberty.  Applica- 
tions are  made  to  him  to  place  under  guardianship  persons  who 
are  alleged  to  be  insane ;  and  also  persons  who  are  spendthrifts. 
These  are  often  cases  of  great  delicacy  and  difficulty,  requiring 


REJECTION  OF  EDWARD  GREELY  LORING.  393 

long  and  patient  hearing,  and  most  careful  and  thorough  inquiry 
and  research.  If  a  professor  is  required  and  expected  to  perform 
his  duty  in  the  school,  it  would  seem  hardly  suitable  to  select  a 
person  encumbered  with  such  additional  duties,  unless,  from  his 
character  and  standing,  he  could  render  as  much  aid  and  assistance 
to  the  school  as  another  man  without  these  incumbrances.  Such 
was  the  case  of  Judge  Story.  His  great  fame,  great  talents,  and 
great  attainments,  enabled  him  to  do  more  for  the  school,  with  all 
his  judicial  duties  upon  him,  than  could  be  done  by  any  other 
man,  who  was  free  from  such  other  labors.  But  Judge  Story  was 
an  extraordinary  man,  and  his  case  forms  an  exception,  not  a  rule." 

No  part  of  this  report  has  been  ever  published.  It  was 
known  at  the  time,  that  this  portion  of  it  was  written  by 
the  distinguished  gentleman  who  had  then  recently  retired 
from  the  bench  of  the  Supreme  Court. 

The  report  gave  rise  to  an  animated  and  protracted  dis- 
cussion. No  definitive  vote  was  taken ;  and,  on  the  motion 
of  the  Rev.  Dr.  Worcester,  of  Salem,  who  desired  to  express 
his  views  in  favor  of  the  report,  the  same  was  laid  aside 
without  being  disposed  of,  and  the  board  adjourned  to 
March  the  23d.  Every  appearance,  however,  indicated 
that  it  would  have  been  accepted  by  a  decisive  vote,  had 
it  been  taken. 

At  the  adjourned  meeting,  on  the  23d  of  March,  the 
president  of  the  university  laid  before  the  board  a  vote  of 
the  corporation,  rescinding  their  former  votes  to  establish 
a  new  professorship,  and  nominating  Mr.  Loring  as  its 
occupant,  and  withdrawing  the  same  altogether ;  and  the 
overseers  took  no  further  action  as  to  said  report. 

But,  Mr.  President,  we  have  not  yet  done  with  the  Hon. 
E.  G.  Loring;  for,  on  the  25th  of  January,  1855,  at  the 
annual  meeting  of  the  overseers,  a  vote  of  the  corporation 
was  laid  before  the  board,  nominating  him  as  lecturer  in 
the  Law  School,  but  without  mentioning  any  term  for 
which  he  was  to  hold  the  office. 


50 


394  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

This  nomination,  with  others,  was  postponed  till  the 
adjourned  meeting  on  the  15th  of  February,  when  Mr. 
Loring  was  rejected  by  a  vote  of  about  two  to  one. 

Such  is  a  brief  and  concise  statement  of  the  case ;  and 
who,  after  hearing  it,  will  venture  to  affirm  that  those 
gentlemen  who  voted  in  the  negative  on  the  15th  of  Feb- 
ruary, did  so  without  the  most  substantial  and  satisfactory 
reasons  ?  I  can  speak  for  myself,  at  any  rate,  and  will 
say  that,  before  I  cast  my  vote,  I  made  the  most  particular 
inquiries,  from  various  members  of  the  bar,  as  to  Mr.  Lor- 
ing's  qualifications,  all  of  whom  expressed  the  opinion, 
that  the  nomination  ought  not  to  be  confirmed.  Being 
personally  unknown  to  the  gentleman,  I  availed  myself  of 
the  information  of  others,  who  had  always  known  him  in 
his  profession. 

They  all  spoke  highly  of  him  as  a  gentleman  and  esti- 
mable citizen,  but  did  not  consider  him  as  well  adapted  to 
the  office  of  law  lecturer.  No  doubt,  other  members  of 
the  board  were  equally  diligent  in  their  inquiries,  and 
voted  against  his  nomination  for  the  same  reasons  which 
influenced  me ;  and  yet,  we  all  remember  what  unworthy 
motives  were  assigned  to  them  by  the  press,  and  they  were 
condemned  at  a  meeting  of  the  law  students  at  Cambridge, 
no  doubt  because  the  young  gentlemen  there  were  unac- 
quainted with  the  facts  in  the  case  ;  for  I  would  not  do 
them  the  injustice  to  suppose  they  would  have  passed  the 
resolutions  they  did  had  they  known  all  the  particulars. 

But,  besides  the  objections  already  named,  there  was 
another,  entitled  to  no  small  consideration,  to  the  appoint- 
ment of  Mr.  Loring  as  law  lecturer  at  Cambridge.  This 
was  the  circumstance,  (since  become  so  prominent,)  that 
he  was,  at  that  very  time — the  15th  of  February,  1855,  a 
commissioner  of  the  Circuit  Court  of  the  United  States,  to 
perform  various  duties  pursuant  to  several  acts  of  congress ; 
and,  by  the  act  passed  in  1850,  was  intrusted  with  large 

. 


REJECTION  OF  EDWARD  GREELY  LORING.  395 

powers  and  duties.  In  that  capacity,  he  is  liable  at  all 
times  to  be  called  upon  to  act  in  cases  of  extradition  of 
fugitives  from  justice  from  foreign  countries,  with  whose 
governments  we  have  treaties  on  the  subject ;  also,  as 
relates  to  revolts  and  mutinies  on  board  of  ships,  and 
crimes  on  the  high  seas  ;  and,  by  the  act  of  1850,  called 
the  Fugitive  Slave  law,  according  to  Mr.  Loring's  own  con- 
struction of  its  provisions,  (as  appears  by  his  remonstrance 
to  the  last  legislature) : —  ^*T< 

"  The  duty  of  commissioners  of  the  Circuit  Court  of  the  United 
States  is  imperative  upon  them ;  for,  by  the  terms  of  the  act, 
they  are  not  merely  authorized,  but  they  are  expressly  required,  to 
exercise  and  discharge  all  the  powers  and  duties  conferred  by  the 
act.  An  application  made,  pursuant  to  law,  to  any  commissioner, 
fixes  that  duty  on  him,  and,  after  such  application,  he  can  neither 
decline  nor  evade  it ;  for,  if  he  could  legally  do  so,  all  others 
might :  and  then  not  only  the  statute,  but  the  constitution  of  the 
United  States,  would  be  violated,  and  the  public  faith  pledged  to 
it,  and  the  oaths  taken  to  support  it,  would  be  broken." 

I  am  sure,  Mr.  President,  I  need  not  enter  into  all  the 
particulars  of  what  Mr.  Loring  may  be  called  upon  at  any 
time  to  do  under  such  a  commission ;  for  I  cannot  doubt 
it  will  be  seen  at  once,  that  holding  such  an  appointment 
may  become  at  any  time  quite  incompatible  with  his  duty 
of  lecturing  or  holding  moot  courts  at  Cambridge. 

Let  it  not,  however,  be  understood  that  I  find  any  fault 
with  Mr.  Loring's  course  in  relation  to  these  matters.  So 
long  as  he  holds  the  important  office,  which  he  has  always 
indicated  it  was  his  intention  to  retain,  I  trust  he  will  always 
discharge  his  duty  in  the  same  fearless,  upright,  and  inde- 
pendent .manner  on  all  occasions,  as  he  has  done  heretofore  ; 
and  I  will  venture  here  to  add,  that,  when  upon  a  recent 
occasion  an  attempt  was  made  to  deprive  him  of  the  office, 
the  duties  of  which  he  had  so  conscientiously  performed,  I 
believe  that  no  one  in  the  commonwealth  rejoiced  more 
than  I  did,  that  the  executive  power  was  in  the  hands  of 


396  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

a  chief  magistrate  who  had  the  moral  courage  to  support 
the  independence  of  the  judiciary,  the  bulwark  of  our 
safety,  and  to  sustain  Judge  Loring  for  having  been  true  to 
the  constitution,  the  Union,  and  the  laws.  At  the  same 
time,  were  I  called  upon  to  act  on  his  nomination  again,  I 
would  not  confer  on  him  an  important  office  in  the  college, 
the  performance  of  the  duties  of  which  might  become,  at 
any  time,  incompatible  with  his  other  great  and  onerous 
duties. 

Before  I  take  my  seat,  Mr.  President,  there  is  one  other 
subject  on  which  I  would  say  a  few  words,  and  that  is  the 
imperative  duty  of  the  members  of  the  corporation,  as 
also  of  this  board,  (whatever  we  may  do,)  to  be  governed 
always  by  considerations  only  of  what  is  right,  and  will 
promote  the  best  and  highest  interests  of  the  college ;  but 
never  to  act  with  reference  to  the  interest  of  personal 
friends  or  connections.  Let  us  abjure  the  spirit  of  nepot- 
ism, that  we  may  avoid  the  fatal  consequences  which  it 
never  fails  to  produce. 

Now,  may  Heaven  forgive  me  if  I  do  injustice  to  any 
one  by  the  suspicion,  but  it  did  seem  to  me  that  in 
the  case  of  Mr.  Loring  there  must  have  been  influences 
at  work  which  caused  his  nomination  to  be  pressed  upon 
the  board  with  so  much  pertinacity  beyond  any  intrinsic 
merits  which  any  candid  person  could  assign  to  him.  I 
am  confirmed  in  this  opinion  by  the  unusual,  and  I  must 
call  it  unwarrantable,  course,  pursued  by  his  friends. 

When  his  nomination  was  finally  rejected,  on  the  15th 
of  February  last,  was  it  such  a  course  as  a  true  regard  for 
the  welfare  of  the  college  dictated,  or  such  a  one  as  it  was 
supposed  would  most  promote  the  private  interests  of 
Mr.  Loring?  It  was  at  once  proclaimed  by  his  friends,  in 
the  newspapers  and  elsewhere,  that  his  rejection  was  to 
be  attributed  wholly  to  his  decision  in  the  case  of  Burns, 
the  fugitive  slave ;  a  statement,  in  my  opinion,  without 
the  least  foundation,  but  one  at  the  same  time  better 


REJECTION  OF  EDWARD  GREELY  LORING.  397 

calculated  than  any  other,  to  injure  the  Law  School,  by 
preventing  young  gentlemen  from  the  South  connecting 
themselves  with  it ;  and,  if  there  has  been  any  decline  in 
the  number  of  the  students,  it  may  probably  be  imputed 
to  this  cause. 

This  statement  was  sent  broadcast  through  the  land, 
and  I  noticed  was  copied  in  extenso  by  those  editors  in 
New  York  and  other  places,  whose  religious  sentiments 
were  opposed  to  those  which,  it  has  sometimes  been  asserted, 
are  most  favored  at  Cambridge. 

Had  the  charge  been  true,  instead  of  being,  (as  I  believe,) 
wholly  unsupported  by  evidence,  no  true  friend  of  the 
college  would  have  aided  in  giving  it  circulation,  as  was 
done  by  the  friends  of  Mr.  Loring,  in  such  a  persevering 
and  determined  manner.  It  certainly  seemed  as  if  an 
attempt  was  made  to  make  it  appear  that  he  was  a  perse- 
cuted and  injured  man,  and  had  been  rejected  for  having 
done  his  duty  as  United  States  Commissioner;  and  as  this 
was  a  subject  which  touched  the  sensibility  of  so  many 
persons,  the  country  or  the  government  at  Washington 
were  perhaps  expected  to  compensate  him  for  his  loss. 

Mr.  President,  I  will  here  conclude  the  remarks  I  pro- 
posed to  offer  on  this  subject,  in  order  to  remove  the 
wrong  impression  under  which  the  public  mind  has 
labored  heretofore.  I  have  long  felt  that  a  vindication  of 
the  conduct  of  the  overseers  who  voted  to  reject  Mr. 
Loring  against  such  unjust  charges  was  imperatively  called 
for,  and  I  regret  it  has  fallen  into  such  feeble  hands. 

I  thank  you  for  the  patience  and  attention  with  which 
you  have  listened  to  my  defence,  and  I  shall  have  been 
well  rewarded  should  it  be  admitted  hereafter,  (as  I  think 
it  ought  to  be,)  that  the  overseers  acted  with  becoming 
firmness  on  the  occasion,  and  would  have  surrendered 
rights  and  privileges  incontestably  belonging  to  them,  had 
they  voted  otherwise. 


LETTER  TO  PRESIDENT  JACKSON. 

WEST  ROXBURY,  (near  Boston,) 

February  16th,  1837. 

MY  DEAR  SIR, — I  have  long  wished  to  have  the  date  of 
the  visit,  with  which  you  were  pleased  to  honor  me  on  the 
first  of  July,  1833,  at  Roxbury,  engraved  upon  some  tablet 
more  durable  than  that  of  memory. 

During  my  recent  extensive  tour  in  Europe,  as  I  was 
walking  one  day  through  the  Royal  Museum,  at  Naples, 
my  attention  was  arrested  by  a  portrait  of  Columbus,  by 
Parmigiano,  who  died  in  1540.  As  I  gazed  on  the  picture 
of  that  great  man,  I  began  to  think  of  my  country,  and  of 
you,  who  have  twice  saved  it ;  once  by  the  valor  of  your 
arms,  when  it  was  attacked  by  a  powerful  foreign  enemy ; 
and  again,  upon  an  occasion  more  recent,  but  of  danger 
not  less  imminent,  when  its  union  was  threatened  to  be 
dissolved  by  a  combination  of  powerful  individuals  in  a 
southern  state. 

It  occurred  to  me,  that  you  might  like  to  have  a  correct 
likeness  of  the  discoverer  of  that  country,  over  whose  des- 
tiny you  have  presided  so  long,  with  singular  wisdom, 
prudence,  and  good  fortune.  The  original  could  not  be 
had,  for  it  belonged  to  the  government  of  Naples ;  but  I 
was  able  to  find  an  artist  on  the  spot,  who  could  take  a 
copy,  and  who  has  succeeded  so  well  in  the  task,  that  it  is 
said,  by  some,  to  be  superior  to  the  original. 

I  have  had  inscribed  upon  one  corner  of  the  canvass, 
the  name  of  my  native  town,  and  the  date  of  your  visit. 


CORRESPONDENCE  WITH  PRESIDENT  JACKSON.        399 

I  have  sent  the  portrait  to  your  address  at  Washington, 
and  ask  the  favor  of  your  acceptance  of  the  same,  as  a 
testimonial  of  the  gratitude  I  feel  for  the  honor  you  con- 
ferred upon  me  by  the  time  you  passed  with  me  at  Rox- 
bury,  and  as  a  proof  of  the  admiration  and  respect  with 
which  I  remain 

Your  much  obliged  friend,  and 

Most  obedient  servant, 

S.  D.  BRADFORD. 
To  ANDREW  JACKSON, 

President  of  the  United  States,  Washington,  D.  C. 


(COPY.) 

REPLY  OF  PRESIDENT  JACKSOK 

WASHINGTON,  February  21,  1837. 

MY  DEAR  SIR, — Your  letter  of  the  16th  instant,  communicat- 
ing the  flattering  feeling  under  which,  when  abroad,  your  heart 
prompted  the  noble  offering  of  the  portrait  of  Columbus,  is 
received  at  a  time  to  make  such  gift  most  welcome. 

Returning  to  the  Hermitage,  to  see  its  walls  adorned  by  the 
likeness  of  the  heroic  discoverer,  and  that  by  the  hand  of  a  too 
partial  friend,  who  has  deemed  the  destiny  which  I  have  fulfilled 
somewhat  worthy  to  associate  me,  in  his  thoughts,  with  the  firm, 
daring,  lofty  spirit  which  gave  a  continent  to  civilization,  and  liberty 
a  land  to  abide  in,  while  it  must  fill  me  with  humility  by  the 
comparison,  cannot  but  be  gratifying  to  that  pardonable  feeling 
which  has  animated  me,  through  a  long  career  of  unceasing  labor, 
in  the  hope  that  I  might  live  in  the  good  opinion  of  my  country. 

I  thank  you,  my  dear  sir,  for  your  much,  esteemed  present. 
I  shall  look  upon  it  with  pride  while  I  live,  for  the  sake  of  the 
gift  and  the  giver,  and  shall  leave  it  as  a  relic  never  to  be  removed 
from  the  halls  of  the  Hermitage,  where,  I  trust,  the  memorial  will 


400  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

be  considered  well  placed,  as  showing  that  I  could  fully  appre- 
ciate, however  feebly  communicate,  my  sense  of  the  sublime  genius 
it  calls  up  to  mind. 

Be    so   kind   as   to   present  to   your   amiable  sister,    my   kind 
salutations,  and  believe  me, 

Very  respectfully 

Your  friend, 

ANDREW  JACKSON. 
To  SAMUEL  D.  BRADFORD,  ESQ., 

Roxbury,  Mass. 


COURT  OF  APPEALS.  . 

•    . 

THE  PRESIDENT,  DIRECTORS,  AND  .COMPANY,  OF  THE  MECHANICS'  BANK,  IN  THE 
CITY  OF  NEW  YORK,  AGAINST  THE  NEW  YORK  AND  NEW  HAVEN  RAILROAD 
COMPANY. 

[This  cause  was  heard  at  the  last  April  term  of  this  court,  at  Albany,  before  Hon. 
Hiram  Denio,  Chief  Justice,  and  Hons.  A.  S.  Johnson,  G.  E.  Comstock,  Wm.  B. 
Wright,  Wm.  Mitchell,  and  F.  Hubbard,  Justices ;  and  was  argued  by  Messrs. 
William  Curtis  Noyes  and  George  Wood,  (with  whom  was  associated  Nicholas 
Hill,  Jr.,  Esq.,)  for  the  defendants;  and  by  Messrs.  E.  S.  Van  Winkle  and  Daniel 
Lord,  for  the  plaintiffs.  It  was  kept  under  advisement  until  the  17th  of  June, 
1856,  when  the  following  unanimous  opinion  of  the  court  was  delivered. — New 
York  Times,  June  26,  1856.] 

COMSTOCK,  J. — This  is  an  action  for  damages  founded  on  a  cer- 
tificate for  eighty-five  shares  of  stock  in  the  defendants'  corporation, 
issued  to  Alexander  Kyle,  upon  the  security  of  which  the  plain- 
tiffs loaned  to  that  person  a  sum  of  money  ;  and  the  first  inquiry 
naturally  is,  what  was  the  force  and  effect  of  the  certificate  in  his 
hands  ?  The  mode  of  presenting  this  inquiry  most  favorable  to  the 
plaintiffs  is,  to  consider  it  as  free  from  the  difficulty  that  there  was 
no  power  in  the  corporation,  its  board  of  directors,  or  any  of  its 
agents,  to  create  the  shares  of  stock  in  question.  Assuming  that 
the  corporation  had  stock  at  its  own  disposal,  and  that  Robert 
Schuyler,  as  agent,  had  full  power  to  sell  it  in  market,  and  issue 
the  proper  certificates  therefor,  it  is  clear  that  any  person  dealing 
with  him  in  good  faith,  and  paying  value,  would  become  entitled 
to  all  the  rights  and  privileges  of  a  stockholder,  although  the  agent, 
by  a  secret  fraud,  intended  the  transaction  to  be  for  his  own  benefit, 
and  used  the  funds  which  he  received  for  his  own  private  pur- 
poses. In  such  a  case,  the  acts  of  the  agent  being  such  as  the  cor- 
poration was  competent  to  perform,  and  strictly  within  the  powers 

51 


WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

delegated  to  him,  upon  principles  entirely  familiar,  the  law  would 
not  permit  third  persons  to  suffer  by  a  secret  abuse  of  the  trust. 

But  it  is  equally  clear,  that  no  rights  would  be  acquired  by  a 
party  not  dealing  with  the  agent  in  good  faith,  and  receiving  a  cer- 
tificate of  stock  without  paying  aiiy  value  therefor.  To  say  that 
the  original  holder  of  such  a  certificate  could  not  be  admitted  to  a 
participation  with  the  genuine  and  bona  fide  stockholders  in  the 
property,  franchises  and  revenues  of  the  corporation,  is  a  proposi- 
tion so  plain  that  it  needs  only  to  be  stated.  Such  was  the  situa- 
tion of  Alexander  Kyle,  the  original  holder  of  the  certificate  now 
in  question.  To  what  extent  he  was  implicated  in  the  frauds  of 
Schuyler,  is  not  material.  The  certificate  is  admitted  to  have  been 
issued  fraudulently,  and  he  paid  nothing  for  it ;  on  this  ground 
it  was  in  his  hands  spurious  and  void  ;  and  this  is  a  conclusion  which 
is  reached  without  calling  in  question  the  power  of  the  corporation 
to  create  the  stock,  or  of  Schuyler,  as  agent,  to  issue  the  proper 
evidence  thereof  to  a  purchaser  in  good  faith. 

The  certificate  in  the  hands  of  Kyle  was  also  void,  for  the 
reasons  which  will  now  be  mentioned : 

First,  Schuyler,  as  the  agent  of  the  company,  had  no  power  to 
issue  a  certificate  for  shares  of  stock,  except  upon  the  conditions 
precedent  of  a  transfer  on  the  books  by  some  previous  owner,  and 
the  surrender  of  that  owner's  certificate.  He  was  the  transfer 
agent  merely,  and  his  powers  were  expressly  limited  to  that  depart- 
ment of  the  business  of  the  corporation.  He  had  no  general  certi- 
fying power,  nor  any  power  at  all  to  certify,  except  as  incidental, 
to  a  transfer  of  stock  by  its  owner  to  some  one  else,  and,  as  an 
incidental  power,  it  could  only  be  exercised  upon  the  conditions 
named. 

Second,  Neither  the  board  of  directors  by  whom  Schuyler  was 
appointed  agent,  nor  the  whole  body  of  the  corporation,  had  power 
to  create  the  stock  which  the  certificate  issued  to  Kyle  professed  to 
represent ;  and  if  the  stock  itself  could  not  be  brought  into  exist- 
ence by  the  whole  power  of  the  corporation,  the  certificate  issued 
as  the  evidence  of  its  existence,  and  the  right  of  the  holder  thereto, 
was  necessarily  void.  Upon  the  premises  last  stated,  the  conclu- 
sion would  be  the  same,  even  if  Kyle  had  paid  to  the  transfer  agent 
the  full  value  of  the  stock.  He  could  purchase  stock  of  any  person 


LIABILITY  OF  SHAREHOLDERS.  403 

who  owned  it,  but  he  could  not,  under  any  conditions,  obtain  it 
from  the  corporation  or  its  agents,  because  there  was  none  to  be  had, 
and  none  could  be  created. 

Thus  far,  I  do  not  understand  that  my  conclusions  differ  essen- 
tially from  the  views  of  the  counsel  who  have  argued  the  cause  for 
the  plaintiffs ;  and,  if  I  was  not  mistaken  in  regard  to  the  general 
scope  of  their  argument,  they  conceded  the  further  result,  that  the 
plaintiffs,  holding  the  certificate  by  transfer  from  Kyle,  have  no 
rights, as  stockholders,  merely  for  the  particular  reason,  that  the  stock 
cannot  exist  under  the  charter ;  the  essential  ground  of  the  action  in 
the  view  of  the  counsel,  being  the  injury  sustained  by  dealing  upon 
the  faith  of  the  false  representation  of  stock  which  the  certificate 
contains.  The  opinions,  however,  of  the  judges  in  the  court  below, 
are  before  us  for  examination,  as  well  as  those  of  eminent  lawyers, 
who  have  not  appeared  upon  the  argument,  and  I  think  it  proper 
to  refer  to  these  opinions  for  the  purpose  of  bringing  into  view  all 
the  theories  upon  which,  it  has  been  supposed,  the  plaintiffs'  rights 
depend. 

Mr.  Justice  Hoffman,  in  the  opinion  pronounced  by  him,  holds 
that  the  certificate  was  not  void,  as  transcending  the  powers  of  the 
corporation  in  the  creation  of  stock  and  issuing  certificates  therefor,, 
or  those  delegated  to  Schuyler  as  the  transfer  agent.  He,  therefore,, 
considers  the  obligation  to  be  one  which  the  defendants  can  perform, 
and  ought  to  perform,  according  to  its  terms.  He  admits  that  the 
effect  of  an  over-issue  is  to  increase  the  number  of  shares,  but  not 
the  actual  capital ;  and,  according  to  his  view,  the  spurious  certifi- 
cates are  to  be  made  good  by  a  reduction  in  the  actual  value  of 
those  that  are  now  genuine.  He  holds,  therefore,  that  the  defend- 
ants were  bound  to  admit  the  plaintiffs  as  stockholders,  and  to 
register  their  shares  on  the  books  accordingly ;  and  that  this  suit 
depends,  purely  and  simply,  on  the  non-performance  of  that  duty, 
after  being  requested  to  perform  it.  "  Without  a  demand,"  he  says.,, 
"  and  refusal  to  transfer,  there  would  be  no  ground  of  action 
whatever." 

Directly  opposed  to  these  views  are  those  of  Chief  Justice  Oakley. 
He  holds  the  certificate  utterly  void,  because  it  transcended  the 
powers  of  the  transfer  agent,  whose  commission,  he  thinks,  was 
special,  and  not  general ;  and,  if  the  action  depended  on  the  valid- 


404  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

ity  of  the  certificate,  he  says,  the  following  questions  would  have 
to  be  answered  :  First,  Whether  the  plaintiffs,  as  bona  fide  holders, 
could  acquire  any  rights  under  it  superior  to  those  of  Kyle,  in 
whose  hands  it  was  void  ?  And,  secondly,  Whether  the  plaintiffs 
can  be  considered  as  bona  fide  holders  ? 

As  to  the  last  point,  he  inclines  to  think  that  the  plaintiffs  were 
bound  to  see  that  Schuyler,  as  agent,  did  not  exceed  his  special 
powers,  and,  therefore,  if  they  chose  to  deal  in  the  stock  without 
inquiring  as  to  that  fact,  they  took  the  certificate  from  Kyle  at  their 
peril.  But  the  learned  chief  justice,  nevertheless,  holds  the 
defendants  liable,  on  the  ground  that  the  certificate  was  a  false  rep- 
resentation that  Kyle  held  stock,  when  in  truth  he  did  not.  He 
thinks  that  Schuyler,  the  agent,  had  an  implied  authority  from  the 
company  to  make  such  a  representation — an  authority  resulting 
from  his  constant  habit  of  issuing  certificates  in  the  same  form  in 
the  course  of  the  regular  business  of  the  corporation.  If,  as  he 
assumes,  the  certificate  was  void,  tested  simply  by  the  authority 
given  to  the  agent,  and  if,  as  he  also  assumes,  the  plaintiffs  were 
bound  to  take  notice  of  the  want  of  authority,  with  deference,  it 
appears  to  me,  that  they  are  affected  by  the  same  considerations 
when  they  change  the  grounds  of  complaint  to  misrepresentation 
and  fraud.  Can  an  agent's  authority  to  misrepresent,  in  the  course 
of  a  dealing,  be  inferred,  when  it  is  admitted  he  has  no  authority  to 
enter  into  the  dealing  at  all  ? 

Justices  Bosworth  and  Slosson,  if  I  do  not  misunderstand  them, 
both  admit,  that  there  was  no  power  in  the  corporation  to  create 
the  shares  of  stock  which  the  certificate  professes  to  represent,  and 
that  the  instrument,  considered  as  a  real  representation  of  stock,  was 
void  for  that  reason ;  thus  discarding  the  only  ground  upon  which, 
in  the  opinion  of  one  of  their  brethren,  the  action  can  be  main- 
tained. They  nevertheless  hold,  that  the  suit  is  not  founded  upon 
the  motion  of  misrepresentation  and  fraud,  thus  as  distinctly  reject- 
ing the  theory  of  the  other.  They  appear  to  me  to  have  found  a 
middle  ground  of  liability,  which  is,  perhaps,  fairly  expressed  in 
the  following  language  of  Justice  Bosworth:  "  The  certificate,"  he 
says,  "  so  far  as  any  inferences  can  be  drawn  from  its  terms  or 
appearance,  purports  to  be,  and  is  as  much  the  act  of  the  defend- 
ants, as  any  certificate  that  has  been  issued  by  the  company  repre- 


LIABILITY  OF  SHAREHOLDERS.  405 

senting  genuine  stock.  The  plaintiffs  took  it,  believing  it  to  be 
what  it  purports  to  be,  and  their  action  is  based  on  the  theory  that, 
as  between  them  and  the  defendants,  it  is,  in  judgment  of  law,  the 
act  of  the  defendants  ;  and  that  the  defendants  are  estopped  from 
asserting  the  contrary,  so  far  as  the  question  of  their  liability  for 
refusing  to  reimburse  to  the  plaintiff  the  amount  of  their  loan  to 
the  extent  of  the  value  of  the  stock  is  concerned."  And  again,  he 
says  :  ' '  The  action  is  based  on  the  assumption,  so  far  as  the  right  to 
be  compensated  in  damages  is  concerned,  that  the  company  has 
given  an  assurance  that  Kyle  owned  the  stock,  which  the  certificate 
represents  stood  to  his  credit  on  its  books."  The  reasoning  by 
which  these  results  are  reached,  is,  in  substance,  that  the  act  of 
Schuyler,  in  issuing  the  certificate,  was  within  the  apparent  scope  of 
his  powers,  and,  therefore,  although  the  contract  was  void,  because 
it  transcended  all  the  powers  of  the  corporation,  and  was  impossible 
to  be  performed  for  the  same  reason,  the  defendant  must,  neverthe- 
less, make  it  good  in  damages  upon  an  assurance  that  it  was  valid  ; 
the  assurance  being  a  part  of  the  contract  itself.  I  confess  my  own 
impression  to  be,  that  this  reasoning  is  too  refined.  Admitting 
that  the  agent  acted  within  the  scope  of  the  power  delegated  to  him 
by  the  board  of  directors,  I  do  not  clearly  see  how  certificates  of 
stock,  which  they  themselves  had  no  authority  to  issue,  void  in 
their  origin,  and  under  all  conceivable  circumstances,  can  be  made 
the  basis  of  a  liability  ruinous  to  the  genuine  stockholders,  by  turn- 
ing the  spurious  instruments  into  a  promise  or  undertaking  that  the 
stock  in  fact  existed. 

The  extreme  difficulty  which  has  been  encountered  in  endeavor- 
ing to  find  a  principle  on  which  to  rest  the  action,  may  be  further 
illustrated  by  reference  to  the  professional  opinions  which  have 
been  submitted  to  our  examination.  In  one  of  them — certainly 
entitled  to  the  very  highest  respect,  the  reasoning  of  which,  I  think, 
must  have  been  in  substance  approved  by  Mr.  Justice  Hoffman — it 
is  claimed  that  all  the  over-issued  certificates  are  valid,  so  far  as 
question  of  corporate  power  is  concerned :  that  the  multiplication 
of  shares  did  not  increase  the  capital  stock,  but  merely  reduced  the 
value  of  the  shares ;  that  the  acts  of  Schuyler,  in  issuing  such  cer- 
tificates, were  done  within  the  scope  of  his  authority  as  agent ;  and, 
as  a  conclusion  from  these  premises,  that  all  the  holders  in  good 


406  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

faith,  who  had  not  already  received  new  certificates  in  their  own 
names,  were  entitled  to  receive  them,  and  so  to  be  admitted  to  all 
the  rights  and  privileges  of  stockholders.  In  another  of  these 
opinions,  distinguished  by  great  acuteness  and  force  of  reasoning, 
the  clear  and  emphatic  concession  is  made,  that  the  defendants  have 
no  corporate  right  to  create  a  valid  title  to  a  single  share  of  stock 
beyond  the  prescribed  number ;  that  the  corporation,  being  prohib- 
ited from  issuing  more  than  thirty  thousand  shares,  was,  by  neces- 
sary consequence,  forbidden  to  recognize,  as  a  part  of  its  stock,  any 
share  known  to  have  been  issued  contrary  to  that  prohibition,  and 
consequently,  that  the  directors  might  refuse  to  recognize  all  shares 
which  could  be  clearly  traced  to  an  origin  in  the  over-issue.  In 
respect  to  all  such  shares  it  is  claimed,  however,  that  compensation 
in  damages  must  be  made  by  the  corporation  to  the  innocent  hold- 
ers, who,  by  dealing  in  them,  have  suffered  pecuniary  loss.  The 
issue  of  false  certificates,  it  is  insisted,  was  a  failure  of  corporate 
duty,  an  act  of  negligence  by  the  corporation,  for  which  it  is  liable 
to  the  party  injured.  The  company,  it  is  also  said,  is  bound  by  an 
estoppel  in  favor  of  the  innocent  shareholder,  and  must  either  recog- 
nize him  as  a  stockholder,  or  respond  in  damages  as  a  wrong-doer 
for  withholding  his  apparent  right. 

If  those  who  assert  that  this  action  can  be  maintained,  had  been 
able  to  agree  upon  a  reason  for  that  opinion,  there  would  be  fewer 
propositions  to  discuss  than  I  shall  feel  obliged  to  examine. 

I  have  already  stated,  in  general  terms,  my  own  conclusion  to  be 
on  the  side  of  the  invalidity  of  the  so-called  spurious  shares,  upon 
the  ground  of  a  want  of  corporate  power  to  create  them,  and  I  will 
now  give  some  further  expression  to  my  views  on  that  question. 
By  the  charter  of  this  railroad  company,  its  capital  stock  was 
limited  to  three  millions  of  dollars,  to  be  divided  into  shares  of 
one  hundred  dollars  each.  It  is  admitted  that  the  whole  capital 
was  subscribed  and  paid  in,  and  that  certificates  of  stock  were  issued 
representing  the  thirty  thousand  shares  actually  subscribed  and  paid 
for.  Now  if  it  is  plain,  as  all  concede,  that  the  capital  could  not 
be  increased  beyond  the  three  millions,  it  seems  to  me  equally 
plain,  that  no  more  than  thirty  thousand  shares  could  be  created 
Both  are  unalterably  fixed  by  the  charter  ;  the  capital,  by  express- 
ing the  aggregate  amount,  and  the  number  of  shares  by  expressing 


LIABILITY  OF  SHAREHOLDERS.  407 

the  amount  of  each.  The  whole  capital  is  divided  into  shares  of 
one  hundred  dollars  each,  and  the  mathematical  result  is  thirty 
thousand  in  all.  Viewing  the  question,  therefore,  as  one  of  abstract 
power,  nothing  appears  to  be  wanting  to  a  complete  demonstration 
that  additional  shares  could  not  be  created.  There  is,  under  the 
charter,  no  more  capacity  to  increase  the  nominal  capital  by  multi- 
plying the  shares  to  an  indefinite  extent,  than  to  increase  the  real 
capital  by  an  actual  subscription  indefinitely  beyond  the  specified 
limit. 

But  it  is  important  to  observe  that  the  question  has  other  rela- 
tions than  those  which  belong  to  it  as  one  of  simple  capacity  and 
power.  The  thirty  thousand  shares  of  original  stock,  subscribed 
and  paid  for  by  the  persons  to  whom  the  genuine  certificates  were 
issued,  belonged  to  them  in  their  individual  right,  and  were  as 
much  their  separate  and  individual  property  as  any  other  possession 
which  they  could  acquire.  The  entire  capital  was  represented  in 
the  property  and  franchises  of  the  corporation,  and  the  owner  of 
each  share  was  entitled  to  a  fixed  and  unalterable  proportion  of 
that  capital.  And  from  this  it  follows  that  any  attempt  to  create  a 
greater  number  of  shares  by  the  issue  of  additional  certificates,  is 
not  only  a  violation  of  the  organic  law  of  the  corporation,  but  a 
direct  invasion  of  the  contract  between  it  and  each  holder  of  its 
original  stock.  Now,  while  it  cannot  be  denied  that  the  value  of 
every  share  may  be  reduced  by  misfortune  or  accident  in  the  man- 
agement of  the  business  of  the  corporation,  or  by  the  neglect  and 
misconduct  of  its  agents  acting  within  their  acknowledged  powers, 
it  is  equally  plain  that  this  result  cannot  be  effected  by  a  change  in 
the  fixed  proportion  which  each  share  bears  to  the  aggregate  num- 
ber. It  has  been  said,  that  the  limitation  of  the  capital  and  the 
number  of  shares,  was  imposed  from  considerations  of  public  policy 
alone.  This  is  not  so.  Those  who  asked  for  the  charter,  and  pro- 
posed to  invest  their  private  capital  in  the  enterprise  which  it  con- 
templated, required  such  a  limitation  for  their  own  protection ;  and 
every  individual  who  subscribed  and  paid  for  shares  of  stock  must 
be  deemed  to  have  done  so  relying  upon  the  charter  for  the  safety 
of  his  investment. 

The  conclusion  to  which  I  am  brought  upon  this  question,  is 
not  impeached  by  the  consideration  (if  such  is  the  fact)  that  there 


408  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

are  shares  and  certificates  of  stock,  beyond  the  original  limit,  which 
cannot  be  traced  to  an  over-issue  by  the  fraudulent  agent  of  the 
company.  I  know  not  how  the  facts  may  be  in  this  respect,  nor 
is  it  material  to  the  argument.  The  corporation  may  be  compelled 
to  respond  to  the  holders  of  certificates,  amounting  in  the  aggre- 
gate to  more  than  its  capital,  because  it  cannot  distinguish  those 
which  are  spurious  and  those  which  are  genuine.  Thus  the  num- 
ber of  shares  to  be  recognized  may  be  practically  increased,  not 
for  the  reason  that  all  over-issues  are  not  void,  but  because,  in  a 
given  instance,  the  corporation  cannot  show  that  the  shares  claimed 
are  of  that  character.  No  question  of  this  kind  arises  in  the  case 
before  us. 

I  have  also  stated,  in  general  terms,  as  one  of  my  conclusions, 
that  the  certificate  issued  to  Kyle,  was  void  in  his  hands,  upon  the 
more  special  ground  that  the  agent  could  not  certify,  except  upon 
conditions  which  did  not  exist  in  respect  to  that  transaction.  I 
observe  now,  further,  that  a  third  person,  dealing  with  Kyle,  and 
taking  from  him  a  transfer  of  the  certificate,  doubtless  had  reason 
to  suppose  that  it  had  been  duly  issued.  Whether  a  dealing  with 
him  under  that  belief,  created  new  rights  against  the  corporation, 
I  shall  presently  examine.  But  Kyle  himself  dealt  directly  with 
the  agent  of  the  company,  and  he  knew  the  conditions  had  not 
arisen,  on  which  the  power  to  certify  depended.  He  knew  this, 
because  he  surrendered  no  previous  certificate,  and  had  no  transfer 
on  the  books,  or  otherwise,  from  any  actual  shareholder.  Now,  I 
do  not  understand  it  to  be  claimed,  on  the  part  of  the  plaintiffs, 
that  the  acts  of  the  agent,  in  issuing  the  spurious  certificates,  were 
within  any  actual  power  which  the  corporation  ever  attempted  to 
confer  upon  him,  nor,  that  all  persons  proposing  to  deal  in  the 
stock,  were  not  chargeable  with  a  knowledge  of  the  extent  and 
limit  of  his  authority.  He  was  known  to  be  a  transfer  agent, 
merely  of  existing  and  genuine  shares,  and  in  that  character  his 
name  was  signed  to  the  certificate  in  question,  and  all  others. 
What  is  claimed  I  understand  to  be  precisely  this  : — That  the 
false  certificates,  being  regular  on  their  face,  and  the  same  in  form, 
as  those  which  were  genuine,  presented  to  third  parties  dealing  in 
them,  all  the  appearances  of  having  been  duly  issued,  although,  in 
fact,  the  agent  had  no  authority  to  issue  them,  and  although  the 


LIABILITY  OF  SHAREHOLDERS.  409 

exact  extent  of  his  authority  was  known.  But  these  appearances 
were  known  to  be  false,  by  those  who  dealt  directly  with  the 
agent  j  and  with  that  knowledge  it  is  not  pretended  that  they  can 
assert  any  claim  against  the  corporation.  Such  was  the  situation 
of  Kyle. 

It  is  as  well,  in  this  connection  as  any  other,  to  notice  a  special 
feature  of  the  transaction,  which,  I  think,  imparts  neither  strength 
nor  weakness  to  the  plaintiff's  case.  The  facts  as  they  appear  in 
the  finding  of  the  judge  are,  that  Kyle  received  the  certificate,  not 
for  his  own  but  the  agent's  user,  and  having  negotiated  with  the 
plaintiffs  a  loan,  by  pledging  it  as  security,  paid  the  proceeds  of 
the  transaction  over  to  the  agent.  But  these  facts  were  not  known 
to  the  plaintiff.  They  dealt  with  Kyle  as  the  owner.  Upon  that 
theory  they  have  a  right  now  to  rely,  and  I  understand  them  to  do 
so.  It  is  the  best  the  case  will  admit  of.  If  they  choose  to  take 
the  facts  as  they  actually  are,  and  to  regard  Kyle  as  a  negotiator 
merely  between  them  and  the  fraudulent  agent  of  the  corporation, 
they  would  then  stand  in  the  position  of  an  immediate  dealer  with 
the  agent,  receiving  from  him  a  certificate  of  stock  issued  without 
authority ;  and  this  position,  as  I  have  shown,  would  be  fatal  to 
their  claim.  They  justly  prefer  to  be  regarded,  and  I  do  regard 
them,  as  third  parties,  dealing  with  Kyle  as  the  apparent  owner  of 
stock. 

In  order  to  keep  in  view  the  exact  conditions  of  the  general 
question,  I  think  it  proper  to  state  the  conclusions  which  I  con- 
sider thus  far  established.  They  are  as  follows  :  First.  The  cer- 
tificate was  void  in  the  hands  of  Kyle,  the  first  holder,  because 
it  was  fraudulently  issued,  and  he  paid  nothing  for  it.  Second. 
It  was  also  void  in  his  hands  because  issued  by  an  agent 
without  authority,  there  being  no  surrender  of  a  previous 
certificate,  and  no  transfer  to  him  on  the  books  of  actual  stock ; 
and  this  want  of  authority  was  known  to  him.  Third.  It  was 
void  because  the  stock  it  professed  to  represent  had  no  existence, 
and  could  not  exist  under  the  charter  of  the  company ;  all  the 
powers  of  the  corporation  in  the  creation  and  issue  of  stock  being 
exhausted.  In  respect  to  the  conclusion  last  mentioned,  it  must 
be,  and  I  think  is  conceded,  that,  as  a  further  result,  the  certificate 
is  void  under  all  possible  circumstances,  so  that  no  person,  in 

52 


410  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

whatever  situation,  can  claim  under  it  the  rights  of  a  stockholder, 
or  damages  on  the  ground  of  a  refusal  to  admit  him  to  such  rights. 
As  the  law  will  not  require  the  defendants  to  violate  their  charter 
by  creating  an  excess  of  stock  to  supply  this  spurious  certificate,  so 
it  will  not  furnish  them  in  damages  for  refusing  simply  to  be 
guilty  of.  such  violation.  I  consider  this  result  so  necessary  and  so 
evident  as  not  to  require  further  discussion. 

I  will  proceed,  however,  to  a  more  particular  examination  of  the 
plaintiffs'  rights  as  the  transferrees  of  Kyle ;  and,  giving  them  the 
most  favorable  view  of  the  case,  will  consider  the  certificate  as  void 
in  his  hands  only  on  the  grounds  that  it  was  issued  fraudulently, 
without  consideration,  and  without  any  authority  contained  in  the 
terms  of  Schuyler's  appointment  as  transfer  agent.  In  this  view, 
the  defendant's  corporation  is  regarded  as  competent  to  recognize 
the  certificate,  and,  if  they  are  bound  to  do  so,  they  must  respond 
in  damages  upon  their  refusal.  The  question,  therefore,  will  be, 
Are  they  so  bound,  or,  to  state  it  in  another  form,  are  the  plaintiffs 
in  a  situation  to  assert  any  rights  against  the  company  which  Kyle, 
their  assignor,  did  not  possess. 

By  the  charter  of  this  corporation  the  shares  of  its  capital  stock 
were  made  transferable  in  such  manner  and  in  such  places  as  the 
by-laws  should  direct ;  and  the  by-laws  declared  that  all  transfers 
should  be  made  in  the  transfer-book,  kept  at  the  proper  office ;  and 
where  a  certificate  of  the  stock  had  been  issued,  that  the  same 
should  be  surrendered  prior  to  the  transfer  being  made.  The  cer- 
tificate now  in  question,  as  all  others,  declared  on  its  face  the  same 
conditions.  This  certificate  has,  in  fact,  never  been  surrendered, 
and  no  such  transfer  has  ever  been  made.  The  plaintiffs,  on 
making  their  loan  to  Kyle,  took  from  him  an  assignment  and  power 
of  attorney  in  blank,  but  paid  no  regard  to  the  fundamental  con- 
ditions on  which  alone  a  legal  title  to  the  stock  could  be  transferred. 
Of  these  conditions  of  course  they  had  notice. 

I  am  aware  it  is  common  to  deal  in  this  manner  in  the  stock  of 
corporate  companies,  and  I  do  not  say  that  any  rule  of  law  or  of 
public  policy  is  violated  by  it.  The  dealer  undoubtedly  acquires 
an  equitable  title  to  the  stock  of  his  vendor,  and,  if  the  vendor's 
title  is  open  to  no  impeachment,  he  has  a  right  to  call  upon  the 
corporation  to  clothe  him  also  with  the  legal  title  by  permitting  a 


LIABILITY  OF  SHAREHOLDERS.  411 

transfer  to  himself  on  its  books,  and  to  demand  a  new  certificate  in 
his  own  name.  But  the  question  here  is,  not  whether  the  pur- 
chaser is  clothed  in  equity  with  all  the  rights  of  the  seller,  but 
whether,  by  a  transfer  not  made,  according  to  the  laws  of  the  cor- 
poration, he  acquires  new  and  superior  rights  as  against  the  corpo- 
ration itself ;  in  short,  whether  his  title  is  good  when  that  of  his 
vendor  was  good  for  nothing. 

So,  too,  it  is  common  to  deal  in  this  manner  with  respect  to  obli- 
gations of  every  description.  If  extreme  caution  is  exercised,  the 
purchaser  will  inquire  of  the  maker  of  the  obligation,  and  procure 
his  admission  of  its  validity,  and  his  assent  to  the  transfer  ;  and  have 
ing  done  so,  an  estoppel  will  arise  in  his  favor,  not  because  he  has 
invested  his  money  in  the  purchase,  but  because  he  purchased  after 
procuring  such  admission  or  consent,  and  upon  the  faith  thereof. 
"Where  there  is  no  estoppel  of  this  sort  to  rely  upon,  then  the  ques- 
tion whether  the  transferree  of  an  obligation  apparently  sound,  and 
from  the  apparent  owner,  acquires  any  better  right  to  enforce  it 
than  his  assignor  had,  depends  on  the  nature  of  the  obligation 
itself.  The  general  and  familiar  rule  is,  that  he  does  not.  If  the 
instrument  has  negotiable  qualities,  then  he  may.  In  the  case  of 
negotiable  instruments,  the  legal  title  passes  by  mere  indorsement 
or  delivery.  When  they  are  not  negotiable,  an  equitable  title  is 
all  that  can  be  acquired ;  and  this  suggests  the  further  observation 
that,  as  between  equities  merely,  the  prior  one,  as  a  general  rule,, 
prevails.  The  prior  equity,  as  well  as  the  law,  is  in  favor  of  the 
party  who  made  the  obligation,  if,  for  any  good  and  valid  reason,  he- 
ought  not  to  be  bound  by  it.  The  principle  is  so  familiar  that 
authorities  need  not  be  cited.  It  seems  to  me,  therefore,  that  we 
are  brought  directly  to  the  question  whether  certificates  of  stock 
in  the  defendants'  corporation  are  to  be  regarded  as  negotiable- 
instruments  in  the  sense  of  the  commercial  law,  so  that,  by  their 
indorsement  and  delivery  to  a  purchaser  in  good  faith,  a  title  to- 
the  stock  they  profess  to  represent  may  be  acquired,  although 
in  the  hands  of  the  vendor  they  are  spurious  and  void,  and 
although  the  company  itself  has  never  recognized  the  transfer.. 
This  question,  I  think,  must  be  answered  in  the  negative.  They 
contain,  in  the  first  place,  no  words  of  negotiability.  They  declare 
simply  that  the  person  named  is  entitled  to  certain  shares  of  stock,. 


WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

They  do  not,  like  negotiable  instruments,  run  to  the  bearer,  or 
to  the  order  of  the  party  to  whom  they  are  given.  They  com- 
mence, it  is  true,  with  the  words,  "  Be  it  known,"  but  such  words 
have  no  tendency  to  show  that  they  possess  the  quality  claimed  for 
them.  A  phraseology  quite  similar  may  be  found  on  bonds  and 
other  instruments  which  no  one  ever  thought  to  be  negotiable. 

But,  aside  from  the  absence  of  any  language  of  these  certificates 
which  can  impart  to  them  a  negotiable  character,  both  the  laws  of  the 
corporation,  and  the  certificates  themselves,  contain  special  restric- 
tions, which  seem  to  me  to  put  this  question  at  rest,  I  do  not 
suppose  that  a  corporation,  without  something  very  extraordinary 
in  its  charter,  can  place  such  restraints  upon  the  sale  of  its  stock, 
that  the  individual  holder  may  not  transfer  as  good  a  title  in  equity 
as  he  himself  possesses,  by  any  mode  of  assurance  good  upon  gen- 
eral principles  of  law.  But,  if  a  natural  person  has  an  undoubted 
right  so  to  express  the  terms  of  his  obligation  that  it  shall  not  be 
negotiable  in  the  commercial  sense,  or  in  any  sense  which  can  give 
to  the  purchaser  a  title  superior  to  that  of  his  vendor,  I  see  no 
reason  to  doubt  that  corporations  possess  the  same  right.  Have 
the  defendants  so  expressed  themselves  in  these  certificates  of  stock  ? 
I  think  they  have.  They  have  distinctly  declared,  both  in  their 
by-laws,  and  on  the  face  of  the  certificates,  that  shares  can  be  trans- 
ferred only  on  the  books,  and  on  the  surrender  of  the  evidence  of 
the  previous  owner's  title.  If  an  illustration  were  wanting  of  the 
value  of  such  a  restriction,  it  is  furnished  in  the  present  case.  But, 
whatever  its  value,  the  restraint  is  lawful  in  itself,  and  one  which 
the  corporation  had  an  undoubted  right  to  impose.  I  do  not  say 
that  it  prevents  the  owner  of  stock  from  selling  his  shares  by  an 
outside  transfer,  so  that  his  vendee  will  acquire  in  equity  his  own 
rights  ;  but  to  say  that  the  holder  of  a  false  and  fraudulent  certif- 
icate, by  indorsing  and  delivering  it  to  another  person,  can  create 
a  title  hostile  to  the  corporation  itself,  would  be  to  deny  to  the 
restriction  any  meaning  or  effect  whatever. 

I  have  examined  attentively  the  authorities  cited  upon  the  ques- 
tion, but  do  not  find  that  the  doctrine  contended  for,  has  in  them 
the  least  support.  In  the  case  of  Kortright  vs.  The  Commercial 
BanJc  of  Buffalo,  (20  Wend.,  91,  L.  C.  in  error,  22  Wend.,  348,) 
it  was  held  that  an  action  of  assumpsit,  will  lie  against  a  corpora- 


LIABILITY  OF  SHAREHOLDERS.  413 

tion  in  favor  of  the  assignee  of  a  stock  certificate,  for  refusing  to 
permit  a  transfer  on  the  books.  This  and  the  class  of  cases  to 
which  it  belongs,  prove  that  a  transfer  not  made  according  to  the 
charter  or  by-laws  of  a  corporation,  confers  upon  the  transferree,  in 
an  equitable  sense,  the  title  of  the  previous  owner;  that,  being 
thus  clothed  with  the  equitable  title,  it  is  the  duty  of  the  corpora- 
tion to  permit  him  to  take  a  legal  transfer  on  the  books  ;  and  that 
the  law  will  imply  an  assumpsit  for  the  performance  of  that  duty. 
For  a  breach  of  this  duty,  actions  of  assumpsit  and  case  have  been 
indifferently  maintained.  In  principle,  the  remedy  should  have 
been  a  special  action  on  the  case.  Such  was  the  opinion  of  Chief 
Justice  Nelson  in  the  case  referred  to — but  he  adds,  "  It  being 
once  settled,  (that  assumpsit  will  lie,)  there  is  no  occasion  for  dis- 
turbing it."  It  is  only  material  to  observe  that  the  assumpsit  is 
not  in  the  certificate  itself,  and  so  passing  by  indorsement  and 
delivery  to  the  transferree,  but  is  implied  after  the  transfer,  from 
the  duty  of  the  corporation  to  clothe  the  equitable  owner  with  the 
legal  title.  Such  cases,  so  far  from  tending  to  show  that  a  dealer 
in  certificates  acquires  rights  better  than  those  of  the  person  with 
whom  he  deals,  seem  to  me  to  justify  quite  an  opposite  conclusion. 
They  necessarily  assume  that  the  change  of  title  is  incomplete, 
until  the  proper  transfer  is  made  on  the  books. 

In  the  case  of  Fatman  vs.  Loback,  (I  Duer,  354,)  no  question 
arose  involving  the  rights  of  the  corporation.  The  decision  is 
directly  opposed  to  that  of  Chancellor  Walworth  in  Stebbins  vs. 
Phenix  Bank,  (3  Paige,  350,)  and  my  own  impression  is,  that  it 
cannot  be  sustained.  I  find  in  it,  however,  nothing  which  can 
affect  the  question  I  am  considering.  The  case  was  disposed  of 
upon  principles  which  were  not  asserted  as  having  any  peculiar 
application  to  dealing  in  stocks  or  negotiable  securities.  The  case 
of  Stoney  vs.  The  American  Life  Insurance  and  Trust  Company, 
(11  Paige,  635,)  only  held  that  the  negotiable  security  of  a  corpo- 
ration, appearing  on  its  face  to  have  been  duly  issued,  was  valid  in 
the  hands  of  a  bona  fide  holder,  although,  in  fact,  issued  contrary 
to  law.  The  case  of  Delofued  vs.  The  State  of  Illinois,  (£d  Hill, 
159,)  related  to  state  bonds,  payable  to  bearer,  and  strictly  nego- 
tiable. Such  securities  are  sometimes  called  stocks,  but  a  confusion 
of  terms  should  not  involve  principles  in  obscurity. 


414  WORKS  OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

In  the  case  of  Fisher  vs.  The  Morris  Canal  and  Banking  Com- 
pany, (3  Am.  Law  Reg.,  423,)  the  question  was,  whether  the 
bonds  of  a  railroad  corporation,  payable  to  bearer,  issued  for  the 
purpose  of  raising  money,  with  interest  coupons  annexed,  also 
payable  to  bearer,  were  negotiable  in  such  a  sense,  that  a  purchaser 
for  value  took  them  free  from  any  equities  between  the  company 
and  the  seller.  The  decision  was  in  favor  of  the  purchaser,  and  I 
fully  concur  in  the  doctrine.  The  distinction  between  such  a 
security  •  and  a  stock  certificate,  which  by  its  very  terms  is  not 
negotiable,  and  which  is  not  a  security  for  money  at  all,  it  seems 
to  me,  is  too  plain  to  escape  observation. 

These  are  the  only  authorities  cited  in  favor  of  the  doctrine 
contended  for.  It  is  quite  evident  that  they  have  no  tendency  in 
that  direction.  I  will  now  mention  some  which  are  decisively  the 
other  way.  In  the  case  of  the  Union  Bank  of  Georgetown  vs. 
Laird,  (2  Wheaton,  390,)  the  stock  was  transferable  only  on  the 
books  of  the  corporation.  The  precise  propositions  decided  were,  that 
no  legal  title  to  shares  could  be  acquired  except  by  a  transfer  made 
according  to  the  requirement,  and  that  the  equitable  title  of  the 
transferree  was  subject  to  all  the  rights  of  the  corporation  against 
his  assignor.  The  same  doctrine  was  held  by  Chancellor  Walworth 
in  Stebbins  vs.  Phcenix  Fire  Insurance  Company,  (3  Paige,  350.) 

In  the  State  of  Connecticut,  there  have  been  a  series  of  cases 
going  still  further.  There  the  registry  on  the  books,  when 
required  by  the  charter  or  by-laws  of  a  corporation,  is  deemed  the 
originating  act  in  the  change  of  title  to  stock,  and  a  transfer  not  so 
made,  is  regarded  as  ineffectual  for  any  purpose.  (2  Cown.,  629  ; 
3  ib.,  544 ;  5  ib.,  246 ;  6  ib.,  552.)  So  rigorous  a  doctrine  has 
not  been  followed  elsewhere,  and  I  think  the  established  rule  now 
is,  that  a  transfer  of  stock  not  made  in  the  manner  prescribed  is, 
nevertheless,  valid  so  as  to  pass  in  equity  all  the  rights  of  the  seller, 
but  no  greater.  (See  further,  Angell  and  Ames  on  Corporations, 
352,  353,  3d  ed.,  where  the  rule  is  stated,  and  the  cases  cited.) 

Looking  at  the  question  upon  principle,  I  am  not  aware  of  any- 
thing in  the  nature  or  uses  of  this  kind  of  property  which  requires 
an  application  of  the  rules  which  belong  to  negotiable  securities. 
Stocks  are  not,  like  bank  bills,  the  immediate  representative  of 
money,  and  intended  for  circulation.  The  distinction  between  a 


LIABILITY  OF  SHAREHOLDERS.  415 

bank  bill  and  a  share  of  bank  stock  is  not  difficult  to  appreciate. 
Nor  are  they,  like  notes  and  bills  of  exchange,  less  adapted  to 
circulation,  but  invented  to  supply  the  exigencies  of  commerce, 
and  governed  by  the  peculiar  code  of  the  commercial  law.  They 
are  not  like  exchequer  bills  and  government  securities,  which  are 
made  negotiable  either  for  circulation  or  to  find  a  market.  Nor 
are  they  like  corporation  bonds,  which  are  issued  in  negotiable 
form  for  sale,  and  as  a  means  for  raising  money  for  corporate  uses. 
The  distinction  between  all  these  and  corporate  stocks  is  marked 
and  striking.  They  are  all  in  -some  form  the  representative  of 
money,  and  may  be  satisfied  by  payment  in  money  at  a  time  spec- 
ified. Certificates  of  stock  are  not  securities  for  money  in  any 
sense,  much  less  are  they  negotiable  securities.  They  are  simply 
the  muniments  and  evidence  of  the  holder's  title  to  a  given  share 
in  the  property  and  franchises  of  the  corporation  of  which  he  is  a 
member.  The  primary  use  and  design,  1  must  be  allowed  to  say, 
of  this  species  of  property,  is  to  afford  a  steady  investment  for  cap- 
ital, rather  than  to  feed  the  spirit  of  speculation.  I  am  aware  that 
people  will  speculate  in  stocks,  as  they  sometimes  do  in  lands,  and 
there  is  no  law  which  absolutely  forbids  it ;  but  such,  I  am  per- 
suaded, is  not  the  use  for  which  we  should  hold  them  chiefly 
intended. 

The  question  is  capable  of  some  further  elucidation,  by  attend- 
ing to  the  rules  which  have  been  settled  in  regard  to  the  transfera- 
bility  of  other  instruments  and  the  effect  of  transfer.  A  certificate 
of  stock  is,  in  some  respects,  like  a  bill  of  lading,  or  a  warehouse 
or  wharfinger's  receipt.  Each  is  the  representative  of  property 
existing  under  certain  conditions,  and  the  documentary  evidence  of 
title  thereto.  They  are  all  alike  transferable  by  indorsement  and 
delivery,  and  the  title  to  the  property,  thus  represented,  passes  by 
such  transfer.  So  far,  they  resemble  each  other,  but  there  are  dis- 
tinctions to  be  noted.  Bills  of  lading  and  wharfingers'  receipts, 
are  commercial  instruments,  and  their  transferability,  or,  as  it  is 
sometimes  termed,  their  "  ^wa^-negotiability,"  depends  on  the 
custom  of  merchants,  and  the  conveniences  of  trade.  Certificates 
of  stock  are  not  commercial  instruments,  and  the  title  to  the  prop- 
erty they  represent,  passes  in  equity  only  by  indorsement  and 
delivery,  where,  by  any  law  or  rule  of  the  corporation,  the  transfer 


416  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

is  required  to  be  made  on  the  books.  With  these  resemblances 
and  these  distinctions,  if  a  bill  of  lading  is  not  negotiable,  in  the 
sense  which  must  be  contended  for  in  the  present  case,  there  is 
much  greater  difficulty  in  affirming  that  such  a  quality  belongs  to 
a  stock  certificate. 

In  the  great  case  of  LicTibarrow  vs.  Mason,  (2  Term  Rep.,  63 ; 
5  id.,  367,)  it  was  held  that  the  consignor  of  goods  had  lost  his 
right  of  stoppage  in  transitu,  when  the  consignee,  holding  the  bill 
of  lading  indorsed  in  blank  by  the  consignor,  delivered  it  to  a 
third  person,  who  received  it  in  good  faith,  and  made  advances 
upon  it.  This  has  been  the  settled  rule  ever  since.  But,  in  such 
cases,  it  is  to  be  observed,  the  legal  title  to  the  goods  has  vested 
by  the  sale  and  consignment  in  the  consignee,  subject  only  to  the 
peculiar  and  anomalous  right  of  arresting  their  delivery,  in  the 
event  of  insolvency.  If,  therefore,  before  this  right  is  exercised, 
the  consignee  transfers  the  bill  of  lading  to  another  person,  who 
takes  it  in  good  faith  and  for  value,  the  latter  acquires  the  title 
which  his  vendor  had  at  the  time  of  the  transfer,  and  which  the 
consignor  cannot  afterwards  take  from  him,  by  stopping  the  goods 
before  they  have  reached  their  destination.  In  this  doctrine, 
which  was  settled  after  a  very  remarkable  contest  in  the  courts  of 
England,  is  contained  all  the  negotiable  quality  that  belongs  to  a 
bill  of  lading,  and  it  requires  but  little  discrimination  to  see  that 
this  is  not  negotiability  in  any  just  sense  of  that  term.  On  the 
other  hand,  it  has  been  held  by  the  Supreme  Court,  and  the  late 
Court  of  Errors  of  this  State, — (Saitus  vs.  Everett,  15  Wend.,  475  ; 
20  id.,  267,)  that  a  bill  of  lading,  covering  goods  shipped,  but 
made  without  the  owner's  authority,  cannot  affect  the  owner's  title, 
into  whatsoever  hands  the  instrument  may  come.  So  it  has  been 
lately  held  in  the  English  Queen's  Bench,  ( Gurney  vs.  Behrend. 
3  Ellis  and  BL,  622,)  that,  if  a  bill  of  lading  is  misappropriated,  as 
if  it  be  indorsed  in  blank  by  the  consignor,  and  sent  to  his  corre- 
spondent, but  not  intending  thereby  to  have  it  transferred,  and  the 
person  receiving  the  bill  transfers  it  for  value,  the  title  to  the  goods 
is  not  affected  by  the  transaction.  Lord  Campbell,  in  delivering 
the  judgment  in  that  case,  very  explicitly  denied  the  negotiability 
of  such  instruments.  In  Covill  vs.  Hill  (4  Denio,  323,)  Chief 
Justice  Bronson  had  occasion  to  say,  "  If  the  master  of  a  vessel, 


LIABILITY  OF  SHAREHOLDERS.  417 

after  signing  a  bill  of  lading  to  the  owner  of  the  goods,  should  give 
one  to  another  person,  it  would  confer  no  rights  upon  those  who 
were  misled  by  the  false  and  fraudulent  paper."  See  also  Thomp- 
son vs.  Dominey,  (14  Mees  and  W.,  402,)  Zachrisson  vs.  Ahman, 
(2  Sand,  68,)  Commercial  Bank  of  Rochester  vs.  Cole,  (15  Barb., 
506.) 

It  is  conceded  that  Kyle,  the  first  holder  of  the  certificate  in 
question,  could  assert  no  title  to  the  stock  it  appears  to  represent, 
and  that,  in  his  hands,  it  was  spurious  and  void,  for  all  the  reasons 
which  have  been  mentioned.  •  Before  its  transfer  to  the  plaintiffs 
can  be  admitted  to  confer  any  better  title  upon  them,  it  must  be 
shown  to  have  not  only  all  the  negotiable  qualities  of  a  bill  of 
lading,  but  others  also  which  that  instrument  does  not  possess. 

Testing  this  question,  therefore,  in  any  conceivable  mode, 
whether  by  the  express  terms  of  these  certificates,  by  their  general 
nature  and  character,  by  the  authority  of  adjudged  cases,  or  by  the 
most  favorable  anologies,  I  have  no  hesitation  in  saying,  that  the 
doctrine  contended  for,  is  entirely  without  foundation.  It  is 
mainly  by  assuming,  for  these  instruments,  the  possession  in  a 
greater  or  less  degree  of  the  peculiar  qualities  of  negotiable  securi- 
ties, that  the  plaintiffs  claim  to  have  acquired,  by  transfer,  better 
rights  than  their  assignor  had ;  and,  as  that  assumption  fails,  this 
claim  must  fall  to  the  ground. 

It  was  also  said,  on  the  argument,  that  those  certificates  of  stock 
are -in  the  nature  of  general  letters  of  credit,  on  the  faith  of  which 
any  one  might  act ;  and  upon  this  idea,  it  was  insisted  that  the 
defendants  are  in  some  way  bound  by  the  obligation  in  the  hands 
of  the  plaintiff.  I  am  unable  to  see  the  analogy  suggested.  By 
attending«to  a  mere  definition  of  a  letter  of  credit,  it  will  be  seen 
there  is  no  resemblance.  Thus,  in  McCulloch's  Commercial  Dic- 
tionary, it  is  defined  to  be  "  a  letter  written  by  one  merchant  or 
correspondent  to  another,  requesting  him  to  credit  the  bearer  with 
a  sum  of  money."  Or,  to  take  the  further  definition  of  another 
writer,  it  is  "  an  open  or  sealed  letter  from  one  merchant  in  one 
place,  directed  to  another  in  another  place,  requiring  him,  that,  if 
the  person  therein  named,  or  the  bearer  of  the  letter,  shall  have 
occasion  to  buy  commodities  or  to  want  moneys,  he  will  procure- 
the  same,  or  pass  his  promise,  bill,  or  other  engagement  for  it,  on 

53 


418  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

the  writer  of  the  letter,  undertaking  that  he  will  provide  him  the 
money  for  the  goods,  or  repay  him  by  exchange,  or  give  him  such 
satisfaction  as  he  shall  require."  (3  Chitty,  Com.  Law,  336  ; 
Bouvier's  Law  Dictionary.) 

Now,  while  it  may  be  the  effect  of  a  stock  certificate  to  give  the 
holder  a  credit,  its  terms  do  not  request,  invite,  or  guarantee  it. 
So  the  possessor  of  property  of  any  description,  or  of  the  evidence 
and  muniments  of  title  thereto,  in  their  effect  give  to  the  possessor 
a  credit  with  other  men.  In  this  sense,  every  chose  in  action 
invites  a  credit  in  favor  of  him  who  holds  it,  and  so  do  the  title- 
deeds  of  his  real  estate.  Innocent  parties  may  deal  with  him  and 
be  deceived.  They  may  lend  their  money  and  lose  it.  Nothing 
more  than  this  can  be  said  of  a  certificate  of  the  ownership  of 
stock  in  a  corporation.  Regarded  as  a  promissory  instrument, 
imposing  obligations  to  be  performed  by  the  artificial  person  which 
makes  it,  it  is  like  any  other  chose  in  action,  except  as  greater  restric- 
tions may  be  placed  upon  its  transfer  and  sale.  Regarded  as  a 
muniment  of  title  merely,  it  is  like  any  other  instrument  by  which 
title  is  manifested.  But  to  say  that,  like  a  letter  of  credit,  it  con- 
tains a  request,  express  or  implied,  addressed  to  any  one  in  par- 
ticular, or  to  the  community  in  general,  to  deal  with,  or  advance 
money  to,  the  holder,  or  that  it  contains  any  assurance  or  guarantee 
addressed  to  the  dealer,  of  the  safety  of  the  transaction,  is,  in  my 
judgment,  to  confound  plain  and  long-settled  distinctions. 

I  will  now  briefly  examine  the  validity  of  the  plaintiffs'  title  in 
another  aspect,  still  keeping  out  of  view,  however,  the  absolute 
want  of  power  in  the  corporation  to  create  the  stock  in  question. 
It  has  been  mentioned  as  one  of  the  reasons  why  the  certificate 
was  void  in  the  hands  of  Kyle,  that  Schuyler,  the  agent,  was  not 
acting  within  the  scope  of  his  powers  when  he  issued  it.  The  full 
effect  of  this  particular  objection  upon  the  plaintiffs'  rights  as  the 
transferees  of  Kyle,  has  not  been  considered.  And  I  observe 
now,  in  the  first  place,  that  if,  upon  a  vague  theory  of  negotia- 
bility, (already  examined,)  they  could  overcome  the  difficulties 
arising  out  of  the  fraud  of  the  agent  toward  the  company  as  his 
principal,  and  out  of  the  want  of  consideration,  this  objection 
would  still  have  to  be  removed.  It  is  obvious,  upon  a  moment's 
reflection,  that  negotiability  can  impart  no  vitality  to  an  instrument 


LIABILITY  OF  SHAREHOLDERS.  419 

executed  under  a  power  where  the  agent  has  exceeded  his  actual 
or  presumptive  authority.  Whoever  proposes  to  deal  with  a 
security  of  any  kind  appearing,  on  its  face,  to  be  given  by  one  man 
for  another,  is  bound  to  inquire  whether  it  has  been  given  by  due 
authority,  and  if  he  omits  that  inquiry,  he  deals  at  his  peril. 

It  is  not  denied,  that  the  plaintiffs,  in  taking  the  certificates  in 
question,  were  chargeable  with  notice  of  the  extent  and  limit  of 
the  powers  of  Schuyler  as  transfer  agent.  All  that  is  claimed  in 
their  behalf  is,  that  his  act  in  issuing  it  was  apparently  and  pre- 
sumptively, although  not  actually,  within  his  authority.  Upon 
this  ground  it  is  urged,  that,  according  to  the  rules  which 
govern  the  relation  of  principal  and  agent,  the  defendants  are 
bound  in  some  way  to  make  the  obligation  good.  The  extent  of 
the  authority,  it  is  admitted,  the  plaintiffs  knew,  or  were  bound  to 
know ;  but  it  was  not  known,  they  say,  that  the  act  done"  was  not 
within  such  authority. 

There  are,  in  the  books,  many  loose  expressions  concerning  the 
distinction  between  a  general  and  special  agency.  The  distinction 
itself  is  highly  unsatisfactory,  and  will  be  found  quite  insufficient 
to  solve  a  great  variety  of  cases.  It  is  not  profitable  to  dwell  upon 
that  distinction.  Underlying  the  whole  subject,  there  is  this  funda- 
mental proposition,  that  a  principal  is  bound  only  by  the  authorized 
acts  of  his  agent.  This  authority  may  be  proved  by  the  instrument 
which  creates  it ;  and  beyond  the  terms  of  the  instrument,  or  the 
verbal  commission,  it  may  be  shown  that  the  principal  has  held  the 
agent  out  to  the  world,  in  other  instances,  as  having  an  authority 
which  will  embrace  the  particular  act  in  question.  I  know  of  no 
other  mode  in  which  a  controverted  power  can  be  established. 
But  in  whichever  way  this  is  done,  it  cannot  be  limited  by  secret 
instructions  of  the  principal  on  the  one  hand,  nor  can  it  be  enlarged 
by  the  unauthorized  representation  of  the  agents  on  the  other. 
These  principles,  I  think,  are  elementary. 

But  suppose  an  agent  is  authorized,  by  the  terms  of  his  appoint- 
ment, to  enter  into  an  engagement,  or  series  of  engagements,  on 
behalf  of  his  principal,  and  while  the  appointment  is  in  force,  he 
fraudulently  makes  one  in  his  own  or  a  stranger's  business,  but  in 
the  form  contemplated  by  the  power,  and  which  he  asserts  to  be  in 
the  business  of  his  employer,  by  using  his  name  in  the  contract, 


420  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

can  the  dealer  rely  upon  that  assertion,  and  hold  the  principal,  or 
is  he  bound  to  inquire  and  to  ascertain  at  his  peril  whether  the 
transaction  is,  not  only  in  appearance  but  in  fact,  within  the 
authority  ?  According  to  the  decision  of  the  Supreme  Court  oi 
this  State,  in  the  case  of  The  North  River  Bank  vs.  Aymer, 
(3  Hill,  362,)  he  can.  There  the  agent  was  authorized  to  draw 
and  indorse  notes  in  the  name  and  for  the  benefit  of  his  principal. 
He  drew  various  notes,  which  in  their  appearance  were  within  the 
power,  but  really  had  no  connection  with  the  business,  of  his  prin- 
cipal. The  plaintiff's  bank,  which  had  the  letter  of  attorney  in  its 
custody,  discounted  them,  and  it  was  held  they  could  be  recovered 
against  the  principal.  Justice  Cowen  and  Chief  Justice  Nelson 
delivered  opposing  opinions,  in  which  the  question  is  very  elabo- 
rately discussed.  The  decision  was  reversed  in  the  Court  of 
Errors,  but  the  case  is  not  reported  in  that  court.  If  the  reversal 
proceeded,  as  I  suppose  it  must,  upon  a  doctrine  directly  opposite 
to  that  held  by  the  Supreme  Court,  then  the  case  certainly  sug- 
gests a  limit  of  great  importance  to  the  liability  of  principals,  the 
recognition  of  which  would  be  decisive  of  the  present  controversy. 
So  in  Grant  vs.  Norway,  (10  Com.  Bench,  665,)  it  was  held,  after 
fall  discussion,  that  the  master  of  a  ship  signing  a  bill  of  lading  for 
goods  not  actually  shipped,  was  not  to  be  considered  the  agent  of 
the  owner  of  the  vessel,  so  as  to  make  him  responsible  to  one  who 
made  advances  upon  the  faith  of  the  bill.  That  is  a  strong  case. 
The  master  is  the  general  agent  of  the  owner  as  to  all  matters 
within  the  scope  of  his  duty  and  employment ;  and  has  unques- 
tionable power  to  sign  bills  of  lading  for  goods  shipped  ;  and  every 
bill  asserts,  as  it  did  in  that  case,  that  the  goods  are  received  on 
board.  The  act,  therefore,  judged  by  its  appearance  and  the 
representation  of  the  agent,  was  strictly  within  the  power.  But 
the  principal  was  held  not  to  be  liable,  because  it  was  not  so  in 
fact.  The  doctrine  of  that  case  was  affirmed  by  the  English  Court 
of  Exchequer  in  Hubertsey  vs.  Ward,  (8  Exchequer  Rep.,  330, 
S.  C.,  18  Eng.  Law  and  Eq.  Rep.,  551 ;)  and  again  with  great 
deliberation  by  the  Comnion  Pleas  in  Coleman  vs.  Riches,  (29  Eng. 
Law  and  Eq.  Rep.,  323.) 

The  distinction  is  not  always  attended  to  between  the  apparent 
powers  of  an  agent  and  his   acts  apparently  but  not   really  within 


LIABILITY  OF  SHAREHOLDERS.  421 

the  power.  An  agent's  apparent  powers  are  those  which  are  con- 
ferred by  the  terms  of  his  appointment,  notwithstanding  secret 
instructions,  or  those  with  which  he  is  clothed  by  the  character  in 
which  he  is  held  out  to  the  world,  although  not  strictly  within  his 
commission.  Whatever  is  done  under  an  authority  thus  mani- 
fested is  actually  within  the  authority,  and  the  principal  is  bound 
for  that  reason.  But  it  is  obvious  that  an  agent  may  clothe  his 
act  with  all  the  indicia  of  authority,  and  yet  the  act  itself  may  not 
be  within  the  real  or  apparent  power.  The  appearance  of  the 
power  is  one  thing,  and  for  thaf  the  principal  is  responsible.  The 
appearance  of  the  act  is  another,  and  for  that,  if  false,  I  think  the 
remedy  is  against  the  agent  only.  The  fundamental  proposition,  I 
repeat,  is,  that  one  man  can  be  bound  only  by  the  authorized  acts 
of  another.  He  cannot  be  charged  because  another  holds  a 
commission  from  him,  and  falsely  asserts  that  his  acts  are  within  it. 

Cases  may  often  arise,  which,  to  a  casual  observation,  might 
appear  to  be  within  the  principles  stated,  but  which  really  are  not. 
Thus  an  agent  may  be  authorized  to  give  notes  for  his  principal  in 
order  to  raise  money  to  be  used  in  the  business  of  the  latter.  A 
third  person  may  inspect  the  power,  advance  the  money  in  good 
faith,  and  the  agent  appropriate  it  to  his  own  use.  In  such  a  case, 
I  should  hold  the  principal  responsible,  not  because  the  act  of  the 
agent  appeared  to  be  within  the  authority,  but  because  the  author- 
ity actually  included  the  transaction.  A  power  given  to  an  agent 
to  borrow  money  upon  notes,  or  otherwise,  implies  that  the  money 
may  be  paid  to  him,  and  so  the  whole  transaction  is  strictly  and 
literally  authorized.  But  suppose  the  power  to  give  the  note  is  on 
its  face  conditional.  It  then  has  no  existence  until  the  condition 
has  been  fulfilled.  To  a  confiding  dealer  who  believes  that  the 
agent  would  not  do  an  improper  act,  the  note  will  certainly  carry 
the  appearance  of  due  authority,  but  if  it  turns  out  that  the  con- 
ditions had  not  occurred,  on  which  the  exercise  of  the  power 
depended,  then  he  was  trusting  to  the  representation  of  the  agent, 
and,  I  think,  must  look  to  him  alone.  As  the  principal  never 
authorized  the  transaction  at  all,  he  is  bound  neither  by  the  con- 
tract, nor  by  the  representation.  If  not  by  the  former,  then  it  is 
extremely  plain  he  is  not  by  the  latter. 

Connected  with  the  observations  last  made,  it  is  proper,  though, 


422  WORKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

perhaps,  scarcely  necessary,  to  notice  another  doctrine  which  has 
been  much  urged,  under  some  disguise,  it  is  true,  but,  in  effect. 
that  the  very  employment  of  an  agent  in  situations  of  trust  and 
confidence  is  a  recommendation  and  certificate  of  his  character, 
so  that,  if  he  deceives  others  to  their  injury,  the  principal  must 
make  compensation.  If  by  this  it  were  only  meant,  that,  where 
the  agent  is  guilty  of  fraud  or  deceit  in  doing  his  employer's 
business,  the  latter  is  responsible,  the  doctrine  is  entirely  true. 
— (Story's  Agency,  §  462,  and  cases  cited.)  But,  in  all  its  other 
aspects  and  forms  of  statement,  the  doctrine  is  unsound.  If  the 
agent,  in  dealing  for  his  principal,  and  within  the  power,  com- 
mits a  fraud,  the  principal  is  liable  ;  not  upon  the  ground  that 
he  holds  the  agent  out  to  the  world  as  an  honest  man,  but 
because  the  fraud  enters  into  and  is  a  part  of  the  authorized 
transaction. 

If  the  agent  deals  dishonestly  for  his  principal,  it  is  in  a  just  sense 
a  wrong  done  by  the  principal  himself,  although  unknown  and  unau- 
thorized. But  the  dealing  itself  must  be  authorized.  If  the  trans- 
action is  not  within  the  power,  then,  as  the  dealing  is  imputed  to  the 
agent  personally,  so  necessarily  are  all  the  circumstances  attending  it, 
and  all  the  means  and  instrumentalities  by  which  the  fraud  is  consum- 
mated. The  power  of  the  agent  to  charge  his  principal  by  doing 
a  wrong  must  be  traced  directly  to  his  authority,  and  it  cannot  be 
referred  to  an  increased  facility  for  imposing  on  the  credulity  of 
others  derived  incidentally  from  his  appointment  to  a  situation  of 
trust.  If  the  fraud  consists  in  an  over-representation  of  his  power 
to  act,  by  which  others  are  drawn  into  dealing  with  him,  then  it  is 
a  self-evident  proposition,  that  a  man  can  no  more  enlarge  than  he 
can  create  a  power  by  such  a  representation. 

Applying  the  principles  which  have  been  stated  in  this  branch 
of  the  discussion,  they  are  decisive  against  the  plaintiff.  If  the  cor- 
poration had  held  stock,  and  Schuyler  had  been  the  agent  to  sell  it, 
and  issue  certificates  therefor,  a  sale  and  a  certificate  issued  by  him 
would  have  been  valid  against  his  principals,  although,  by  a  private 
fraud,  he  applied  the  proceeds  to  his  own  use.  The  transaction 
with  the  purchaser,  in  all  its  branches,  the  sale,  the  certificate,  and 
the  payments  to  him  of  the  money,  would  have  been  not  only 
apparently  but  actually  within  the  powers.  His  misappropriation 


LIABILITY  OF  SHAREHOLDERS.  42  g 

t 

of  the  proceeds  would  have  been  a  mere  breach  of  trust,  relating 
to  moneys  in  his  hands,  and  upon  the  principles  of  trust,  his  inten- 
tion to  misappropriate  would  not  affect  an  innocent  party. 

But  such  were  not  the  relations  between  Schuyler  and  the  cor- 
poration, nor  was  he  held  out  to  the  world  as  standing  in  such 
relations.  He  had  no  power  to  sell  stock  at  all,  and  none  to  issue 
certificates,  except  as  incidental  to  a  sale  between  existing  stock- 
holders ;  and  then,  it  depended  on  the  conditions  precedent  of  a 
transfer  on  the  books,  and  a  surrender  of  a  previous  certificate  for 
the  same  stock.  The  authority  which  he  assumed  to  exercise, 
therefore,  confessedly,  never  had  an  actual  existence,  and,  within 
the  principles  which  have  been  stated,  it  never  had  an  apparent 
existence.  His  appointment  in  its  very  terms,  which  all  dealers 
are  supposed  to  have  been  acquainted  with,  did  not  include  his 
acts,  and  there  is  no  pretence  that  the  authority  it  conferred  was 
ever  enlarged  by  any  holding  out  or  recognition  of  such  acts.  All 
that  can  be  said  in  behalf  of  the  plaintiffs  is,  that  the  certificate 
itself  implied  a  representation  or  assurance  that  it  was  issued 
within  the  power ;  in  other  words,  that  the  conditions  on  which 
the  power  depended  had  been  fulfilled.  Even  this  representation, 
when  closely  scanned,  was  no  more  than  an  inference  of  the  dealer, 
that,  as  the  agent  had  no  authority  to  certify,  except  under  conditions, 
those  had  been  in  fact  performed.  But  the  conclusive  answer  is, 
that  the  defendants  never  authorized  any  such  representations.  To 
say  that  they  had,  would  be  simply  saying  that  they  authorized  the 
certificate,  because  the  representation  was  contained  in  that,  and 
existed  nowhere  else,  and  this  would  be  assuming  the  very  point  in 
dispute.  The  representation  or  assurance,  therefore,  if  such  we 
call  it,  was  the  unauthorized  act  of  the  agent.  Upon  this  the 
plaintiffs  naturally,  no  doubt,  relied,  and  so,  doubtless,  the  dealer 
did  upon  the  bill  of  lading,  in  Norway  vs.  Grant,  (supra,)  which 
contained  an  express  declaration  that  the  goods  were  shipped. 
The  precise  difficulty  is,  that  they  relied  upon  the  appearance 
which  the  agent  gave  to  the  act,  and  by  that  they  were  deceived. 
They  were  under  no  deception  as  to  the  power  in  its  real  or  appar- 
ent scope.  Testing  the  question  by  any  rule  of  agency  with  which 
I  am  acquainted,  the  defendants  were  not  bound  by  the  transaction. 
If  any  one  of  the  main  conclusions,  at  which  I  have  arrived  in 


424  WOEKS  OF  S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

this  discussion,  is  sound,  there  is  no  remaining  ground  on  which 
the  action  can  be  sustained.  Viewing  the  certificate  in  question, 
as  unaffected  by  the  want  of  power  in  the  corporation,  to  create  or 
recognize  the  stock  it  appears  to  represent,  we  have  seen  that  it 
was  void  in  its  origin,  because  issued  without  consideration,  and  in 
fraud  of  the  defendants'  rights.  We  have,  also,  seen  that  those 
objections  were  equally  fatal  to  its  validity  in  the  hands  of  the 
plaintiffs,  as  the  assignees  of  the  first  holder.  It  has  been  further 
shown,  that  the  instrument  imposed  no  obligation  or  duty  on  the 
defendants,  upon  the  more  special  ground,  that  the  act  of  Schuyler, 
in  issuing  it,  was  not  within  any  authority  which  they  ever,  in  fact 
or  in  pretence,  conferred  upon  him  as  their  agent ;  and,  if  this 
objection  is  sound,  the  further  observation  has  been  made,  and,  I 
doubt  not,  assented  to,  that  it  cannot  be  overcome,  by  allowing  to 
the  certificate,  the  transferable  quality  and  immunity  which 
belongs  to  negotiable  paper.  Unless  these  conclusions  can  be 
overthrown,  they  are  subversive  of  the  entire  ground  of  action. 

The  notion  of  estoppel  which  has  been  advanced  in  the  argu- 
ment, not  as  a  distinct  ground  of  liability,  but  blended  with  other 
principles,  deserves  by  itself  very  little  consideration.  Every  cor- 
porate as  well  as  private  obligation  or  instrument  undoubtedly 
contains  an  express  or  implied  representation  of  facts  upon  the  faith 
of  which  innocent  parties  may  deal.  If  it  be  a  promissory  note, 
value  received  is  a  fact  expressed  or  implied,  and,  although  the 
fact  may  not  be  so,  the  maker  is  bound  to  pay  the  obligation  in  the 
hands  of  an  innocent  third  party,  not  upon  any  theory  of  estoppel, 
but  upon  principles  peculiar  to  that  species  of  security.  Where 
the  instrument  is  not  negotiable,  the  maker  may,  as  I  have  hereto- 
fore observed,  be  affected  by  an  estoppel  in  pais,  if  it  be  transferred 
upon  his  representation  of  its  validity,  and  the  dealer  acts  upon 
that  representation.  But  to  say  that  he  is  estopped  by  the  instru- 
ment itself  simply  because  he  made  it,  and  a  third  party  has  dealt 
with  it,  is  only  asserting  in  another  form  that  fraud,  mistake,  duress, 
illegality,  want  of  consideration,  or  want  of  authority,  when  the  act 
is  one  of  pretended  agency,  is  no  defence.  This  would  subvert  the 
settled  maxim  that  the  assignee  or  purchaser  takes  subject  to  all 
equities  between  the  original  parties.  It  would  also  subvert  another 
maxim  which  belongs  to  the  doctrine  of  estoppel  itself.  That 


LIABILITY  OF  SHAREHOLDERS. 

maxim  is,  that  an  admission  or  representation  is  no  estoppel  in  favor 
of  a  stranger  to  whom  it  is  not  made,  and  whose  conduct  it  was  not 
expressly  designed  to  influence.  (3  John's  Cases,  101 ;  6  Hill,  534  ; 
3  Id.,  215  ;  7  Barb.,  644.)  The  result  is,  that  before  the  princi- 
ples of  estoppel  can  be  applied  to  this  controversy,  it  must  be 
asserted  and  proved,  that  a  certificate  of  stock,  differing  from  all 
other  modes  and  forms  of  obligation  used  in  the  transactions  of 
men,  contains  within  itself  a  representation  or  admission  of  facts 
which  any  dealer,  however  remote  from  the  original  parties,  may 
accept  as  addressed  to  himself, -and  intended  to  influence  his  con- 
duct. For  such  a  doctrine  no  authority  has  been  cited,  and  it  has 
no  foundation  in  any  principle  hitherto  recognized. 

As  I  have  once  mentioned,  a  theory  of  the  action  prominently 
urged  upon  the  argument,  assumed,  that  the  corporation  had  no 
power  to  create  more  than  the  original  three  millions  of  stock,  or 
to  issue  certificates  for  a  greater  amount.  That  this  is  so,  I  think 
I  have  demonstrated.  But,  assuming  these  premises,  it  was  then 
insisted  that  the  certificate  in  question  was,  therefore,  false,  and  that 
the  action  would  be  on  this  ground.  The  essential  principle  of  the 
case  in  this  view  would  be,  that  as  the  defendants,  for  want  of  cor- 
porate power,  cannot  recognize  the  certificate  as  the  true  representa- 
tion of  stock,  and  so  respond  to  the  engagement  which  it  implies, 
they  must  make  compensation  in  damages  for  the  injury  sustained 
in  consequence  of  the  representation  regarded  as  false. 

Now,  by  presenting  the  falsehood  alleged  in  the  certificate,  and 
the  consequent  injury  as  the  ground  of  the  action,  a  plausible 
appearance  is  given  to  this  view  of  the  case.  But  it  is  essentially 
illogical.  The  falsehood,  viewed  in  this  aspect  alone,  really  con- 
sists in  a  want  of  corporate  power  to  enter  into  the  engagement, 
and  that,  instead  of  being  a  cause  of  the  action,  is  a  serious  diffi- 
culty to  be  removed.  If  an  agent,  irrespective  of  all  questions 
arising  out  of  the  special  limitations  of  his  own  authority,  as 
derived  from  the  board  of  directors,  cannot  bind  a  corporation,  or 
affect  the  rights  of  its  genuine  stockholders  by  the  terms  of  an 
over-issued  certificate,  there  is  great  difficulty  in  affirming  that  the 
result  may  be  indirectly  reached  by  thus  changing  the  ground  of 
liability.  If  a  corporation  has  received  the  benefit  of  its  agent's 
misrepresentation  or  fraud  in  a  transaction  unauthorized  by  its 

54 


426  WORKS   OF   S.  D.  BRADFORD. 

charter,  I  will  not  say  there  is  no  mode  of  redress.  I  am  not  an 
advocate  of  the  doctrine  that  a  corporation  cannot  be  responsible 
for  a  wrong,  or  may  not  in  some  form  be  liable  when  its  agents 
enter  into  engagements  which  its  charter  forbids,  and  the  benefits 
of  the  transaction  can  be  traced  to  its  stockholders,  or  are  held  for 
their  benefit.  But  such  is  not  the  case  before  us.  The  stock- 
holders of  this  corporation  are  in  no  wise  connected  with  the  mis- 
conduct of  their  agent,  nor  have  they  been  benefited  by  it.  It  is 
true,  they  trusted  him,  but  it  is  not  alleged  that  they  had  not 
ample  reasons  for  so  doing.  Conceding  that  Schuyler's  authority, 
derived  from  his  appointment  as  transfer  agent  by  the  board  of 
directors,  might  apparently  include  his  fraudulent  acts,  the  diffi- 
culty is  only  removed  one  step  further  back.  The  directors  them- 
selves were  not  the  corporation,  but  its  agents  only.  It  may  be 
granted  that  they  wielded  all  the  corporate  powers,  but  among 
those  powers  the  one  in  question  is  nowhere  to  be  found.  It  did 
not  even  have  apparent  existence.  The  argument  concedes  this 
absolute  want  of  power,  and  I  have  yet  to  discover  the  principle 
on  which  the  genuine  stockholders  can  be  made  liable  in  any  form 
for  an  attempt  to  exercise  it,  by  any  of  their  agents,  for  their  own 
individual  benefit. 

But  such  a  point  need  not  be  determined.  Before  reaching  this 
ultimate  question,  the  action  fails  upon  the  special  grounds  which 
have  been  examined  at  large.  Conceding  to  the  defendants  the 
power,  if  they  so  elect,  to  recognize  and  perform  the  obligation 
under  which  their  agent  attempted  to  place  them,  then,  if  they  are 
not  liable  upon  their  refusal  to  do  so,  for  the  reasons  which  have 
been  stated,  it  is  extremely  plain  they  are  not  if  the  power  to  do 
so  is  wanting.  To  say  that  their  agent's  false  representation  of 
stock,  which  did  not  and  could  not  exist,  can  render  them  liable  to 
dealers  in  the  spurious  certificates,  when  they  would  not  be  bound 
to  recognize  the  same  dealers,  if  the  stock  in  fact  existed,  and  the 
representations  were  therefore  true,  involves  a  fallacy  so  evident, 
that  it  needs  only  to  be  suggested.  This  is  the  error  in  the  argu- 
ment which  places  the  defendants'  liability  on  the  simple  ground 
that  the  certificate  is  a  fraudulent  representation  of  non-existing 
stock ;  the  alleged  fraud  consisting  in  the  statement  of  that  false- 
hood alone.  In  this  view  of  the  controversy,  the  other  fatal 


LIABILITY  OF  SHAREHOLDERS.  437 

objections  to  the  action  are  overlooked.  If  I  have  been  successful 
in  showing  that  the  plaintiffs  can  have  no  title  to  the  shares  of 
stock  mentioned  in  the  certificate,  for  the  particular  reasons  which 
have  been  given,  then  manifestly  the  non-existence  of  the  shares, 
or  the  false  assertion  of  their  existence,  is  no  ground  of  complaint. 
In  concluding,  it  is  proper  to  say,  that  the  case  of  The  Bank  of 
Kentucky  vs.  The  Schuylkill  Bank,  (1  Parsons'  Select  Eq.  Cases, 
180,)  has  not  been  overlooked.  That  case  has  been  much  relied 
on  as  an  authority  in  point  upon  the  general  question  before  us, 
and  it  is  certainly  true,  that  in  the  opinion  delivered  on  pronounc- 
ing the  judgment,  some  principles  were  stated  scarcely  reconcilable 
with  the  conclusion  to  which  we  have  come.  In  that  case,  however, 
the  suit  was  brought  by  the  corporation  against  its  own  fraudulent 
agent,  after  it  had  recognized  the  spurious  issue  under  an  enabling 
act  of  the  legislature ;  and  in  many  essential  circumstances  the 
controversy  differed  from  the  present  one.  After  a  careful  consid- 
eration, we  are  unable  to  yield  to  that  decision  any  controlling 
influence  upon  the  question  now  to  be  determined.  We  are  all  of 
opinion  that  the  judgment  should  be  reversed,  and  a  new  trial 
granted.  Ordered  accordingly. 

A  Copy.  F.  KERN  AN,  State  Reporter. 

Tracy,    Powers   and    Tallmadge,   defendants'    attorneys;    E.   S.    Van   Winkle, 
plaintiffs'    attorney. 


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